Road network lies in the worst shape forcing the commuters including the foreign visitors to suffer a lot every day at Anwara upazila where industries are growing up to contribute to the country’s economy. Indifference of authorities concerned is also causing the frequenters to pay additional fare and the vehicles to get damaged. Locals observed that they didn’t experience such worse condition of roads in the upazila over last few decades. However, officials of concerned Roads and Highways department said they are trying to fill the potholes with brick chips to make the roads usable while process for floating tender for renovating them is under process.Sources said most of the roads under the Anwara upazila, on other bank of the river Karnaphuli, got dilapidated and left in a very bad shape since repeated torrential rains damaged them during the rainy season. Some eight kilometer road from the Shikalbaha ‘Y Junction’ to Kalabibir Dighir Morr got dilapidated badly with huge potholes developed on them. Another 15 kilometres of road running from Kalabibir Dighir More to Gasbaria College in Chandanish through Anwara-Barkol-Chandanish road also got badly damaged, said the sources. Moreover, bad condition of some 4.5 kilometres of roads from the Chaturi Chumuhuni Bazar to Kafco Centre, Kafco Centre to Juidondi and Parki Sea Beach road is also causing pain to the commuters every day. Some of the roads are also owned by different organisations and Local Government Engineering Department, they said. Mentionable, a number of industries including Karnaphuli Fertiliser Company Limited (Kafco), Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Limited (CUFL), Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ), Saad-Musa Industrial Park, Bangladesh Marine Academy and Parki Sea Beach, an attractive tourist spot in Chittagong, are situated in the coastal upazila. Besides, the country’s first ever tunnel to be constructed at Tk 8,500 crore under the river Karnaphuli would connect south Chittagong through the upazila where a proposed economic zone would also be developed. Thousands of people of Banskhali, Chandanish and Satkania upazilas use the PAB (Patiya-Anwara-Banshkhali) Road every day. Several thousand workers of KEPZ and Saad-Musa Industrial Park reach respective workplaces through the road having no other alternative. Huge numbers of foreigners also experience lot of troubles while going to important installations, the tunnel site and economic zone sites, informed the sources. Nurul Islam, a local and frequenter, observed that people gets a horrifying experience while traveling through the road because of its bad shape. The moon-ride through the road is difficult for aged persons and patients to withstand. “Transport fare also went up by several times due to the bad shape of the road and consequent damages being caused to vehicles. We now have to count Tk 50 as against previous TK 15 per head as auto-rickshaw fare for travelling from Moijjartek to Chaturi,” said Islam. Md Abul Kalam Azad, a retired banker who recently visited Parki Sea Beach with his family members, said it is really difficult to travel through the road across the Anwara upazila. All the roads leading to the beach on the other end of the upazila were found dilapidated and all covered with potholes, he said. “Our personal vehicle could not ply even quarter kilometer of the road smoothly. The road condition is seriously discouraging tourists flocking at the Parki beach,” Kalam told the daily sun. The authorities concerned should take immediate step to renovate the roads. Otherwise, the tourists will suffer much in this peak season of tourism, he said. Contacted Executive Engineer Tofail Miah of Roads and Highways Dohazari division said a tender was floated for renovating damaged roads under Anwara and Chandanish upazila. “But, the tender was cancelled as the offered price was 24 percent above the estimated one,” he informed. A fresh tender would be floated on Sunday. If everything is normal in the fresh tender, it may take one and a half month to start the work, he said. “We are now filling the potholes as a part of routine work to keep the roads usable for vehicles,” said the executive engineer. Under the tender, 12 kilometers of road from ‘Y Junction’ to Kalabibir Dighi and from Kalabbibir Dighi to Barkal Bridge under Anowara upazila would be renovated. Works of some 16 Kilometers of road under Chandanish upazila will also be done under the same tender, added Tofail. However, sources in the department said the rate scheduled for 2011 was followed for estimating the cost in the tender. But, the present rate will be around 30 percent higher. So, unless the estimated cost is calculated following the present rate the bidders may quote higher rate again. In that case the fresh tender also may be cancelled, they feared.
