Admn spends Rs 1.5 crore on dismantling road railings and fixing again after increasing heigh

Speaking with The Indian Express, former nominated councillor Surinder Bahga asked why green hedges couldn’t serve the purpose? “Why couldn’t they just have green hedges like other cities. Why are they fixing railings, even after knowing that railings don’t help prevent fatal accidents? It is just a vague explanation to go ahead with installing railings,” he said.

“They are fixing railings without any authentic study about their viability in preventing accidents. We architects had opposed it, but nobody listened to us. Grand avenues are partitioned to give them a narrow look. It isn’t just ruining the city’s beauty, but also not practical. The bureaucracy-engineers’ nexus will oppose us by saying they are doing it to control accidents,” Bahga said.

Bahga said, “Railings of this height are not even needed. Bushes or green hedges are a great option.”

A heritage expert, on the condition of anonymity, said, “Why were railings not fixed properly when they were installed for it first. When they were first installing railings, people objected as it spoiled the look and scale of the road. The hedges were working well. But the traffic police would insist that people randomly crossing the road was a major hazard. If thorny hedges are installed, no one would do that. It seems this time, they have now replaced it to strengthen railings.”

“At the Madhya Marg stretch, the dismantling of the existing 9-10½ foot-long MS flat iron railing and fixing the same again after repairing, like cutting, strengthening of existing bent members, and increasing the height of the existing railings by welding 6-inch piece of channel of size 125mm x 65mm and rotate the grill after cutting the edges of horizontal angles/vertical flats welded to MS vertical channel & 9 long flat of size 50mm x 6mm welded on sharp edges is being done for lakhs,” as mentioned in the scope of work.

The scope of work further says that they are also inserting a “12mm dia long bar placed in each vertical flat after making a suitable hole and welding with flats. The channel of railing is to be joined back-to-back with new 12mm nuts, bolts & 3-inch-long GI sleeves. The whole structure is also being painted with two coats of synthetic enamel paint”.

Second Innings Association president RK Garg said, “Railings are not environmentally friendly. The Engineering Department should prefer greens as these give a beautiful look and can be maintained with reasonable expenses rather than spending huge amounts, which require high maintenance costs.”

“Also, heritage lovers do not like railings. Several times, the railings proved hazardous as people jumped over and crossed them. In the past, such railings had to be cured from the top edges. In view of high AQI, hedges could be preferred to save on dust and particles generated,” Garg added.

Inderjit Ghai, a road consultant, said, “Bhubaneswar in Odisha has been designed on similar patterns as was Chandigarh. They have installed sleek pedestrian guard rails on both sides of the main road, with pedestrian entry points fixed, to prevent pedestrians from entering the main highway and crossing the main road.  You may check the street view of Bhubaneswar. They haven’t fixed any railing in the median. It’s a serious safety hazard.”