Road dividers in Dimapur are too high — PWD official

Says PWD’s opinion, suggestion was not sought prior to construction of dividers in urban Dimapur

Eastern Mirror Desk
Dimapur, May 15: Recently, motor accidents in Dimapur have been blamed on the road dividers—a fairly recent addition as part of the ongoing urban Dimapur’s makeover.

However, as far as the Tajen Ao Road is concerned, there appears to be another side to the story. Observers have pointed out the absence of proper street lighting; road marking and reflectors at both ends of the dividers; as well as the road congestions, as some possible factors causing the accidents.

A highly reliable source from the state’s Public Works Department told Eastern Mirror on Wednesday that no agency had consulted the department prior to the construction of road dividers along said stretch of road.

According to the source, Tajen Ao Road falls in the jurisdiction of the PWD.

“If it is for the welfare of the people, anybody can come and do it; but we would like to know who is cooking in our kitchen at least,” reasoned the source.

Nevertheless, the source said that the height of the road dividers were “at a dangerous level” which rather causes more damage to the vehicles while raising the possibility of fatalities. “Even though there may be no guideline about the height, this particular divider is very dangerous.”

Even expressways do not have dividers of such height, said the official. “I feel the divider should not exceed a certain height which might cause more damage and fatality as our road conditions are not the very best.”

He said that whenever victims file cases, it is against the PWD (R&B). Same is the case with drainages; people approach the PWD when drains get clogged resulting in damages to road, he said.

Another source said that the dividers were constructed from the common pool scheme under the Local Area Development Plan/Project, which is at the discretion of the District Planning and Development Board.

“Each year, an amount of INR 1 cr. is given to each constituency and out of that INR 20-25 lakh is used under the common pool,” informed the source.

According to Panger Longkumer, a resident of the area, the recently constructed dividers have been damaged already during ‘minor accidents.’ He pointed out that the materials used for construction were of poor quality.

Meanwhile, in the wake of ‘frequent mishaps due to the dividers,’ the Dimapur traffic police has initiated a plan to install signage and reflectors at both ends all road dividers in the commercial hub. They are expected to begin the works soon.

“Motorists should be careful and follow the cautionary warnings and rules once they are put up; it is all due to rash driving that these accidents occur,” said the official.