Mangaluru: Congress leaders and party workers staged a protest march on Saturday to the Mahakalipadpu railway underbridge (RUB) construction site, demanding that the authorities expedite the long-pending project and open the road for public use immediately.
The protest was led by MLC Ivan D’Souza and Block Congress president Abdul Saleem, who visited the site along with party members to highlight the inordinate delay in completing the RUBs under the Mangaluru Smart City Limited (MSCL) project.
Congress delegation meets Smart City officials
The Congress delegation held discussions with Arun Prabha K.S., General Manager (Technical) of MSCL, who assured them that the underbridge work would be completed within 30 days and the road opened for traffic soon after.
D’Souza, however, expressed dissatisfaction over the slow progress.
“They cannot blame the rain for the delay. Road repairs on the Pumpwell–Kankanady stretch cannot be taken up until the Mahakalipadpu road and RUBs are opened,” D’Souza said.
He added that he had requested Police Commissioner Sudheer Kumar Reddy and DCP (Crime and Traffic) K. Ravi Shankar not to impose traffic restrictions on the Pumpwell–Kankanady stretch until the Mahakalipadpu road is reopened.
MLC blames BJP leaders for delay
D’Souza also held BJP representatives, including Dakshina Kannada MP Capt. Brijesh Chowta and Mangaluru City South MLA D. Vedavyas Kamath, responsible for the prolonged delay.
Work taken up unscientifically
Block Congress president Abdul Saleem criticised the project’s planning, alleging that the construction was carried out unscientifically, leading to frequent waterlogging.