Mangaluru: In a bid to get the Surathkal – MRPL – Kana road repaired at the earliest, Member of Parliament, Nalin Kumar Kateel directed oil companies in the area to contribute towards the same. It is to be noted that the oil companies have agreed to repair the roads since several heavy vehicles of these companies ply on the stretch.
In a special meeting held on Friday, October 21, at Zilla Panchayat office hall with the top officials of the companies and others, Nalin Kumar Kateel asked the oil companies to contribute a stipulated amount with the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) to build up the roads to ease traffic. He mentioned that there is an urgent need for roads and the companies agreed to contribute.
“A total of Rs 1.5 crore is required to repair the road on priority. The Government can not sanction that amount as of now which leaves the responsibility of road repairs to the MCC in association with the oil and chemical companies located in the area of concern”, Nalin Kumar said.
The burden of the Government is distributed among the companies and a major share will be put in by the MCC. According to the decision taken in the meeting, a 30% share of Rs 1.5 Crore, which comes upto Rs. 45 lakh will be put in by MCC, Mangalore Chemical Fertilizers will have to put in Rs. 15 lakhs, while Baden Anilin and Soda Factory (BASF), Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemical Limited (MRPL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharath Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) will have to shell down Rs. 20 lakh each.
The heads of all these companies gave a nod to the proposal and the repair work will begin soon. Mangaluru North MLA Moideen Bawa said that this project is of utmost importance and of high priority because it is very hard for the motorists to evade potholes while driving/riding. “It is also of priority because the locals are protesting against the companies not starting repair works”, he added.
Among the panelists were MCC Mayor Harinath and MCC Commissioner Mohammad Nazeer.
