Poorly lit roads a cause of worry for Ggn residents

Gurugram: The construction of underpasses at Rajiv Chowk, Signature Tower and near Medanta Hospital may have reduced the number of traffic jams seen daily in the area. However, safety of commuters who use these routes at night remains a risky affair.

With no lights installed in the recently built underpass, dark underpasses continue to be unsafe for commuters, especially those travelling by two-wheelers.

The dangers to commuters were recently exposed after a biker was hit by an unidentified vehicle at the Medanta underpass. The victim subsequently succumbed to his injuries.

Taking cognisance of this problem, the National Highway Authority of India has written to the state electricity board. The matter, however, remains unresolved.

Lakhs of commuters who used to endure massive traffic blockades at Rajiv Chowk and Signature Tower had a huge sigh of relief after the underpasses were inaugurated by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on January 22.

The underpasses were completed in a record time of 16 months, much before the 30-month deadline initially set for the engineers. However, many commuters have complained that a lot of these lights are not functioning properly.

Despite over 50,000 streetlights present across Gurugram, with many parts of the city covered with LED lights, the issue of most of them being dysfunctional has often troubled citizens.

A major cause for the rising thefts and snatching incidents in the city is also been blamed on the non functional street lights in the city.

Areas in the city like Gurugram-Faridabad Road, Golf Course Road, Golf Course Extension Road, Udyog Vihar, Sector-23 and Sector 10 are plagued with non-functional street lights.

Four government organisations are in charge of maintenance of street lights in different parts of the city. However, residents have said that a major improvement is needed in the maintenance work.

One of the major steps to be taken by the Haryana government to ensure that Gurugram becomes a smart city is the optimum use of solar energy. To fulfil this objective, the district authorities will soon begin the process of installing streetlights powered by solar energy.

The process will begin in the month of March itself and there are plans that eventually most parts of the city will be lighted with renewable forms of energy in the future.