The project to widen the road from Shalibanda to Fateh Darwaza in Old City would be taken up only after interacting with owners of properties to be acquired for the project, MIM MLA Ahmed Pasha Quadri assured residents of the area on Wednesday. Allaying their concern, he said suggestions of the property owners would be considered before finalising work on the project. Mr Quadri visited the area with GHMC South zone commissioner Ravi Kiran and interacted with local residents at a private function hall. Their visit came on the heels of a report Road plan to hit families, published in DC dated Monday, June 18.
Though locals said they have reached a consensus on the need to widen the stretch, there is confusion, as also apprehension among many, on the exact width. “Many properties could be spared if GHMC reduces the proposed width,” Ifteqar Ali, a local resident, said. The road is 40 feet wide at present, and narrows down to even 20 feet at some corners and stretches. The GHMC is proposing it to widen up to 100 feet, including footpaths. Nearly 200 properties will be affected, with half the owners standing to lose over 50 per cent of their land, if the corridor is widened up to 100 feet.