Better condition of roads is the top priority of Government

Bhopal: Chief Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said that better condition of roads is the top priority of the State Government. They should be constructed with quality within prescribed time-limit. Good roads are identity of a state. Chief Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan was addressing a workshop of PWD engineers at the Academy of Administration here today. Public Works Minister Shri Nagendra Singh and Chief Secretary Shri R. Parasuram were also present on the occasion.
Shri Chouhan said that roads’ contribution is important in the state’s development. Better roads accelerate pace of development. He asked the PWD engineers to work with their full capacity and cooperate in creation of developed Madhya Pradesh. He exhorted the engineers to ensure better road connectivity in the state and connect every Majra-Tola with roads. This is major challenge before the PWD Department. Construction of good roads will result in speedy development in villages. He said that the department has gone for major reforms by adopting e-tendering. This process should be increased upto to e-payment and e-measurement systems. He said that contractors’ should be extended desirous cooperation. Besides, action should also be taken against contractors carrying out sub-standard works.
Chief Minister Shri Chouhan said that the state’s growth rate was 11.98 last year in which good roads have also played an important role. He laid special emphasis on improvement of old roads. Shri Chouhan directed to utilise allocated funds within prescribed time-limit. He said that officers and employees of the department putting in excellent performances will be awarded.
At the workshop, Chief Minister Shri Chouhan held direct dialogue with chief, superintending and executive engineers of the department and sought information about targets and their achievements so far. He said that targets must be achieved within the prescribed time-limit. There is no shortage of funds for construction of roads. Quality should be ensured by using district-level labs. The Chief Minister said that he will undertake review again in the first week of April. During his tours, the Chief Minister will also inspect works pertaining to road construction.
Chief Minister Shri Chouhan said that collectors are being directed to call PWD engineers for meetings only once a week so that they can remain present in the field in the remaining days and accelerate pace of work. Reviewing works of the Road Development Corporation and Project Implementation Units, he said that work should be accelerated while keep quality in view.
At the outset, PWD Minister Shri Nagendra Singh threw light on the workshop’s objectives. He said that state’s progress depends on development of roads. Pace of work has been accelerated after constitution of Project Implementation Units. Works to the tune of about Rs. 2,000 crore will be carried out by these units. The Road Development Corporation is carrying out works worth about Rs. 30 thousand crore.
Academy of Administration Director General Smt. Abha Asthana, Principal Secretary PWD Shri K.K. Singh, State Road Development Corporation MD Shri Vivek Agrawal, Secretary Public Works Shri Vijay Singh Verma, Engineer-in-Chief Shri Akhilesh Agrawal and department’s engineers were present on the occasion.