-SATISH HANDA
136 km long KMP Express-way built with project budget worth over Rs 2000 crore started in 2003 by Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC), remained hanging for years for one reason or the other and construction work was completed up to Gurugram in 2018, still lacking facilities for those driving and travelling on the road causing frequent mishaps and claim large number of lives of travelling passengers. Surprisingly, government started collecting revenue through Toll Plaza on the route worth over Rs 90 lakh daily prior to Express-way was open for public without offering basic facilities to vehicle owners, which are still neglected in-spite of public demand on this killer Express-way to heaven.
It was unfortunate for the family returning after visiting a holy religious place lost eight lives on the spot in a road mishap in which three others were also seriously injured near Bahadurgarh a couple of days ago when the vehicle in which family was travelling rammed into a truck wrongly parked on road side when hit by another truck from behind. According to residents living on both sides of Express-way, although government is earning handsome revenue towards toll tax but lacks all basic facilities including petrol pumps, parking places for vehicles, good eating place, facility of drinking water and toilets except large number of illegal roadside ‘dhaba’ and liquor vends on sides attracting he attention of vehicle drivers stop their vehicles on this Express-way inaugurated by Prime Minister Narender Modi in 2018 and even HSIDC failed to get power connections from state government or installation of a Solar Plant for street lighting during night on this 136 km road causing frequent mishaps.
Information reveals, there are few illegal ‘dhaba’ and liquor vends seen amidst agriculture fields on both side of Express-way attracting attention of drivers park their vehicles on road side inviting mishaps and residents of area blame HSIDC, district administration and police neglect causing frequent accidents raising a question over HSIDC for not providing necessary facilities like a petrol pump, good eating places, toilets on the route, parking places for standing vehicles, provision for drinking water and installation of street light during night in-spite of earning huge revenue.
