Bhubaneswar, June 7: The plan to beautify the state capital ahead of the Asian Athletics Championships has taken a hit with power bodies digging up cycling tracks for underground cable work along Bidyut Marg and from Jayadev Vihar to Nandankanan Square.
The wrong timing of the work has not only affected the beauty of the city, but also halted efforts of the administration to promote use of non-motorised transport like cycles and clearing tracks across the city.
"It is highly irresponsible of the administration to dig up and destroy the cycle tracks in this manner. It is a sheer waste of public money since cycle tracks built spending lakhs are now gone. The administration will have to rebuild the tracks again," said Girija Sahu, a shop owner near Omfed Square.
Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Limited (OPTCL) and Central Electricity Supply Utility (Cesu) have taken up the work to lay the underground power cables for smooth supply of electricity to households.
In the first phase of the project, four major stretches - Sachivalaya Marg, Bidyut Marg, Janpath and Cuttack-Puri Road - are being covered.
The underground cable laying work has not only damaged the cycle tracks, but also created a major traffic mess on Cuttack-Puri road.
Cable work on Bidyut Marg has become a major concern for the administration since the athletics meet is less than a month away and plans were afoot to beautify the arterial road.
Bidyut Marg is crucial to the athletics meet venue as Kalinga Stadium falls on this stretch and it will be accessed by hundreds of delegates and sportspersons from both India and abroad.
The administration now fears that the city might face criticism for the mess and it would give a bad impression to the visitors.
"It is a nightmare to move on the Cuttack-Puri Road since the underground cable work is on in full swing and the sides of the stretch lie dug up. The situation on Bidyut Marg is no different. The long stretch of cycle track is gone. The power agencies should have planned the work after the Asian meet got over on July 9," said Himansu Hota, a resident of Nayapally.
Mayor Ananta Narayan Jena said they had asked the OPTCL and the Cesu to work on a war footing and complete the underground cable work along Bidyut Marg by June 25.
"Since the OPTCL and the Cesu have demolished the cycle tracks to lay underground cables, they will have to reconstruct the tracks. We will keep a watch on whether they violate any norm," said Jena.
The Cesu, however, brushed aside the mayor's charge.
Senior general manager, Cesu, S.K. Swain said they had taken all necessary approval from government agencies, including the public works department and public health engineering organisation, before digging up cycle tracks for the underground cable work.
"We took the approval from the agencies since we are working on their properties. We will rebuild and repair the tracks after finishing the work," said Swain.
A senior official of Cesu said their executing partner had found the cycle tracks to be the safest place to lay the underground cables.
"It might have involved more time and money if we had opted for any other stretch to lay the underground cables. We have told our partner to expedite work and complete it well before time," he said.
