Gurgaon: Thousands of commuters have been forced to negotiate uneven stretches, loose dust and construction waste in Industrial Development Colony (IDC) as road repair and drainage work in the area has been progressing slowly. As the winter season approaches, most of them — office-goers as well as people who own businesses there — now fear the repair will be delayed even longer because of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) restrictions.The condition is particularly difficult for two-wheeler riders. Since many lanes and service roads are still unfinished, bikers have to get around heaps of debris on the carriageway and roadside.“There have been several incidents where bikes, and even autos, have toppled because of the unevenness of the roads here. Some vehicles also get damaged while navigating these roads,” said Sumit Rao, president of the Gurgaon Industrial Association.The unfinished portions are also adding to the dust burden at a time when the city is entering the pollution season. Loose soil and construction material are kicked up whenever a vehicle passes, leaving pedestrians exposed to the dust.Apart from businesses, the area houses the district registrar’s office for works related to RWAs and housing societies. Gauri Sarin, founder of Making Model Gurgaon, said the condition of the roads around the district registrar’s office is especially very poor. “Many people visit the office for RWA and society-related work, including elderly people, and they have to struggle to reach the premises. If the road work is going to take time, at least basic measures should be taken to provide a safe, usable access route for pedestrians and vehicles instead of leaving the area in such a condition,” she said.Many said the problem becomes more pronounced during peak hours when traffic builds up on the narrow usable portions of the roads. Nitin Bagga, a daily commuter, said, “Every day we have to negotiate the broken and unfinished portions to reach work and sometimes, when the roads are filled with water, it is completely unusable.”
A commuter said when the roads fill up with sludge and water, it becomes completely unusable
The businesses operating are also dealing with the impact of the construction.The industrial association said it had repeatedly raised the issue of the delayed repair work with the civic body and wanted the remaining work expedited before pollution-control restrictions affect construction activity. It said the project had been progressing slowly for nearly a year, prolonging the disruption for commuters and businesses.“If GRAP restrictions lead to construction being halted, the problem will only continue. The remaining work needs to be sped up before that,” Rao said.MCG, however, said the pace of work has picked up after the monsoon slowed down construction activities a few months earlier.According to MCG, the project, which also includes construction of stormwater drains and footpaths, started around February-March this year. The civic body said drainage work was nearing completion and road and footpath work was progressing simultaneously.
There have been several incidents where two-wheelers and autos have toppled because of the uneven stretches
“Around 60-70% of the road work has been completed while the stormwater drain is around 80-90% complete. Though the completion deadline is Jan 2027, we are targeting completion by Dec,” an official said.He said it would also take interim measures to control dust from unfinished portions. “Wherever the road is still unpaved, sprinkling will be carried out to prevent loose dust from being kicked up,” he added.
