Road repair work in process at Bidanasi in Cuttack. Pictures by Badrika Nath Das

Cuttack, May 23: Access to better civic amenities remains a distant dream for residents of Bidanasi area.

Among the civic issues, better road connectivity is of major concern for the residents here. Moreover, the inordinate delay in completion and repair of a major Bidanasi road that connects the area to CDA Sector 6 and 7 near Baula Chhak is creating problems both for the residents and commuters.

“Despite a rise in population density at Bidanasi, there has been no significant development in terms of basic amenities, including roads and drinking water facilities, which has sparked off resentment among the residents,” said Satyanarayan Dakua (32), a local resident.

The road connecting Bidanasi with CDA is in a shambles. Both pedestrians and drivers face major problems because of potholes on the road.According to Dakua, road repair work began seven months ago in the area. However, as construction work was moving at a tardy pace, there had been concerns that the completion process might take a couple of months more.

The road acts as a connecting link between several destinations, including Tulsipur, Bidanasi and CDA.

“How can the authorities overlook our problem? Moreover, it is more than five months that there has been absolutely no progress in the road repair work,” said Shanu Lenka (25), a commuter.

Because of the inordinate delay, residents had recently staged a road blockade to protest against the callous attitude of the authorities in executing the project.

“We were forced to stage a protest as no step had been taken to complete the road repair work. However, according to the authorities, road repair work has been delayed because of construction of drain and other works,” said Trinath Sahu (31), another local resident.

Local councillor Nirupama Hati of ward No. 1 admitted that there had been delay in repairing the road. She, however, said the work was likely to be over soon.

“The road work got delayed because of the construction of two major culverts along side the stretch,” said Nirupama.