HC to hear petition on roads

The petitioners have charged that the State Public Works Department (PWD) as well as the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) have wasted huge public funds in the name of constructing cement concrete roads at various places throughout the city. They have sought a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the allegations, pertaining to the issue. These allegations were first levelled by former Bharatiya Janata Party MP Banwarilal Purohit.

The petitioners have charged that the concreteroad work along the Residency Road stretch was being undertaken to benefit the cement companies and the contractors without considering the larger public interest. The road had been in a good condition and was tarred only recently. All it needed was some widening work to overcome the recurring problem of traffic jam, they stated.

The petition also seeks the court’s directives to the Maharashtra State Electricity Board authorities to shift the electric poles that are creating a hurdle along the road stretch.

State Minister for Public Works Nitin Gadkari, Banwarilal Purohit, Commissioner of Police and the Maharashtra State Electricity Board are among the respondents named by the petitioners.