Public Works Department allots tender of Rs 17.5 crore to city-based builders Sukhmeet Bhasin Bathinda, July 30 Work on Ring Road 1 is all set to start in August as the Public Works Department has allotted a tender of Rs17.5 crore to Bathinda-based AMC builders. The length of Ring Road 1 is 4.7 km and a railway overbridge and an underbridge will be constructed on the road. It will be constructed from the Cantonment police station on the Bathinda-Chandigarh highway to the Mansa flyover chowk. The work on this project is expected to be completed in 10 months. Finance Minister Manpreet Badal said, “The issue of Ring Road 1 in the city has finally been resolved. The project will cost Rs17.5 crore. For the past 19 years, the ring road has been a big issue and we are fully committed to all-around development of Bathinda. Development works will not be affected due to the shortage of funds.” The notification regarding the construction of the ring road was issued in January 2001 and funds for acquiring land were released in January 2004. However, residents were not satisfied with the amount of compensation offered and filed a case in the HC, which gave its decision in favour of the Trust in 2011. Later, the residents filed an appeal in the SC challenging the order. During the hearing in June 2017, the SC had allowed the construction of the ring road, leaving aside 16 acres of the disputed land. The SC had handed over the inquiry to the Bathinda DC on August 24, 2017. Earlier, the Bathinda Development Authority had ownership right on 38 acres, while the administration acquired seven acres from 35 owners by giving them compensation of Rs23 crore in the beginning of the year. The ring road will provide relief to the residents from traffic congestion as entry of big vehicles will be banned in the city. There is an urgent need for the ring road as with the setting up of Guru Gobind Singh Refinery and a power plant at Talwandi Sabo, the volume of traffic on the city roads has increased greatly. Plying of heavy vehicles on the GT Road leads to fatal accidents.

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