Nagpur’s Rs35-crore road widening and concretisation project on the Zingabai Takli-Godhani-Bokara-Koradi route is facing serious safety concerns after encroachments reduced the available right of way at several locations and were linked by local representatives to repeated accidents, including a fatal crash on Tuesday.
The 4.5-km road was intended to improve traffic movement and safety. The project was sanctioned in 2018 and completed in 2021 by the state public works department (PWD), according to information reported by the Times of India. However, locals and public representatives have alleged that the department allowed existing encroachments to remain, forcing changes to the planned road width during construction.
The original right of way was approximately 18 metres. A senior PWD official, speaking to the newspaper on condition of anonymity, said encroachments were not removed because of “unwarranted pressure”. The official said the sanctioned carriageway width of 6.5 metres on each side was maintained by making adjustments to the right of way at certain locations.
The narrowing has become a particular concern where vehicles are parked outside shops, further reducing the space available for moving traffic. Local representatives said the combination of altered alignment, commercial establishments and roadside parking had created dangerous conditions for motorists using the route.
The PWD official also said the project’s two-year defect liability period had expired. Any additional corrective measures, including work required to address the road’s present deficiencies, would therefore require fresh work orders. This means that changes to the built road cannot be treated simply as routine defect rectification under the original contract.
The road’s administrative responsibility is also spread across multiple public institutions. Local corporator Seema Davre met municipal commissioner Vipin Itankar on Wednesday and demanded the immediate removal of encroachments, along with strict action against vehicles parked outside shops. Davre said the road had been widened to improve safety but the encroachments were left untouched.
Congress corporator Snehal Thakre said she had repeatedly raised concerns with civic and Nagpur Improvement Trust officials about variations in road width and encroachments. She alleged that the alignment had been altered during construction to accommodate commercial establishments. “Whenever commercial permissions are granted, the road is diverted around 20 feet ahead to accommodate the establishment. It should not matter whose shop it is. The sanctioned road width must be maintained,” she said.
The allegations place the focus not only on roadside encroachment but also on how sanctioned road designs are protected during implementation. The project’s stated carriageway width may have been retained in sections, but the reported reduction in the broader right of way has raised questions about whether the completed road functions as originally planned.
Davre’s meeting with the municipal commissioner is the latest immediate administrative response reported in the case. The demands include removing encroachments and regulating roadside parking on the Zingabai Takli-Godhani-Bokara-Koradi road.
