Himachal's miserable Theog-Hatkoti road

Despite passing through Himachal Pradesh's affluent and scenic apple belts the 80-km-long Theog-Hatkoti road has, for the seventh year in a row, held on to the unofficial title of the 'worst road' in this hill state. The entire road is uneven with deep potholes. When rain comes slush and the deep potholes become little ponds, making it even more perilous.

Accidents happen, breakdowns are frequent. In fact, the road is hardly a road. It is a daily challenge to drive on this nightmare of a road. During the apple harvest season, traffic goes up from July to September. Instead of three hours it takes ten to twelve hours to complete the 80-km journey as traffic jams last for several hours .

In 2007, through international bids work to broaden the Theog-Hatkoti road was given to a Chinese company for Rs 228 crore. The Chinese public-sector company dug up the entire road in a few months and then the work came to standstill. The company blamed the state government for not providing it with dumping sites and not giving forest clearances.

The state government said the firm was finding excuses and being lazy. When the Chinese firm left in early 2013 less than 20 per cent of the project work was completed at a snail's pace. International bids were again invited and last year the work for broadening the road was awarded to Delhi-based C & C company at a revised cost of Rs 303 crore.

But not an inch of work has been completed in the last year. Sources in the state secretariat said that one reason why work did not progress was because the state government took over six months to clear two stone crushers for this project.

Why so much time was taken has puzzled all sparking rumours about a powerful person wanting to set up these crushers. There is also talk that the Delhi-based firm carrying out the work wants the state government to raise the amount and hence the delay. But what has shocked the hill people travelling on this road is that the state government has done very little to start work on the much-delayed project. The project was supposed to be completed in three years. A year has already gone without any progress.

Theog-Hatkoti road is one of the important roads in the state. Running through the apple belt it carries 80 per cent of state's entire apple produce. There is even talk by farmers to launch a stir outside the state secretariat and wake up the sleeping government.

"C & C company has only carried out four per cent of the work in the last one year. At this rate the work will finish in 20 years while the scheduled period is only three years," Vir Prakash Baltoo, president of the Jai Bharat Gramin Vikas Samiti told Business Standard on Sunday.