Hyderabad-Vijayawada section of NH-9 in need of widening

325 persons killed in accidents on the highway this year
Dangerous ride: Rough patches and dangerous curves mark the NH-9, which needs widening at many places.

CHOUTUPPAL (NALGONDA DT): Plagued with potholes, rough patches and dangerous curves, the Hyderabad-Vijayawada section of the National Highway-9 has become unsafe for lakhs of people travelling on it. While the proposal to widen the road into a four-laner is gathering dust at New Delhi, people are finding it difficult to take the highly congested route.

The road that connects major districts like Krishna, Guntur, Khammam and Nalgonda to the State capital had 325 persons killed in accidents this year alone. According to an official document served by the R&B Department, 1,536 persons have lost their lives and 6,538 sustained injuries in 4,012 accidents from January 2001 to September 2006. There has been a drop in the death toll with the introduction of 108 service and posting of special highway patrolling parties of the Police Department.

Danger factors

Official sources have estimated that two vehicles pass through the road every three seconds leaving no space for pedestrians and two-wheeler riders. High-speed lorries and trolleys with heavy loads wreak havoc on the highway.

As per the Indian Road Congress (IRC) code, a four-lane road is required where the traffic flow is more than 20,000 Passenger Car Units (PCUs). Though it is 44,080 PCUs on this particular section of the highway, a stretch of 167 km from Dandu Malkapur in Nalgonda district to Nandigama in Krishna district, it is still a two-lane road.

A delegation of people’s representatives led Union Minister S. Jaipal Reddy went to New Delhi a couple of years ago to impress upon the government the need to widen it, but it has not taken shape due to various factors.

‘Padayatra’ plan

“Rs.1,500 crore is needed to convert this road into a four-laner. Surface Transport Minster T.R. Baalu has become a stumbling block to the proposal,” Nalgonda MLA Komatireddy Venkat Reddy told The Hindu on Tuesday. Vexed with the “inordinate delay in launching the works” and also to highlight the problem, the MLA is all set to embark upon a ‘padayatra’ on the NH-9 from November 21.

Local leaders of the Telugu Desam already launched their march on Monday and leaders of all parties sans Congress, would be blocking the highway for an hour on Wednesday with the same demand.
Article by: S. Ramu for The Hindu