Public Accounts Committee will look into poor quality of NH 66 construction in Kerala: Venugopal

Malappuram, May 28 (IANS) The Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament, K.C. Venugopal, on Wednesday said he would take up with the committee the pits and cracks in the under-construction National Highway (NH) 66, in a few districts in Kerala.

Speaking to the media soon after visiting the site of the sunken pits, Venugopal said he had to see them for himself so that he would be well-equipped to present the case when the PAC meets on Thursday.

“The NH is a big project of the state and complaints have come from several districts including Alappuzha,” said Venugopal.

“Doubts have been raised about the design of the NH and it has now become doubtful if it suits Kerala’s topography. By the day, numerous complaints are surfacing over it,” added Venugopal who is also the AICC General Secretary (Organisation).

“I have asked the National Highway Authority of India in writing about the role of the Kerala government. None should forget that the State is a stakeholder and hence one has to find out what has the state done on this,” said Venugopal.

Taking a dig at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his son in-law, Kerala PWD Minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas, Venugopal said, “Till the reports of the collapse of the under-construction NH 66 surfaced, both of them were taking credit and now both of them are silent.”

“I have asked the authorities concerned for a full-fledged report and the preliminary impression that one gets is that there was undue hurry in completing the project,” added Venugopal.

Meanwhile, with the Nilambur Assembly bye-election set to take place on June 19, Congress campaign managers have taken up the issue of the crumbling NH 66 in a big way as it passes through the Malappuram district.

Significantly, both Riyas and Vijayan have been claiming that had it not been for the Left government in the state, this highway would not have become a reality.

--IANS

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