Bhubaneswar, April 14: A road divider on the stretch between Housing Board and Ram Mandir Square has become a cause of concern with seven accidents taking place in two months.

Two women in a car met with an accident at the spot in front of Capital High School last evening. Earlier, six vehicles met with a similar fate.

Local residents said before completing the road renovation and expansion work, the contractor had already started constructing the divider in a wrong manner. Traffic police officers also admitted that the divider defies all road safety norms. “The authorities of the roads and buildings division of the public works department have been requested to ask the contractor concerned to remove the road divider,” a police officer said.

“The road construction work has been going on for six months. Ideally, the contractor should have constructed the divider after completing the roadwork but he began constructing the divider before that. Without considering these facts the contractor has started erecting the divider on the incomplete road,” said Sarat Tripathy, a social worker.

Apart from the Exhibition Ground, Ekamra Haat, Capital High School, St Joseph High School, Biju Patnaik State Youth Welfare Forum, Bhima Bhoi School for the Blind, branch office of the Life Insurance Corporation, hostels of the Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology are dependent on the road. So, the sudden erection of divider has created serious traffic problems.

Last month a sports utility vehicle met with a serious accident and two days after that a biker had a fall there.

“As the streetlights don’t work properly at times, the stretch becomes dark in the evening hours causing accidents. The drivers drive at their usual speed and suddenly discover the road divider. But by then there is no time to control,” said another person requesting anonymity.

A senior police officer said: “The city police has taken these accidents seriously and has contacted the authorities of the public works department to ask the contractor concerned to remove the faulty structure from the middle of the road. If the contractor fails to carry out the necessary work in time, then action will be taken against him as per law.”