Jamshedpur: The Kendriya Durga Puja Samiti (KDPS), an umbrella body of around 350 puja committees, has urged the East Singhbhum administration to address civic and infrastructure gaps to ensure safe and smooth celebrations.At a meeting on Saturday evening, the organisers flagged damaged roads, waterlogging, inadequate lighting, traffic congestion and the need for better crowd management around pandals.“Due to rains, several roads and thoroughfares around puja pandals in Pursudih, Bagbera, Mango, Dimna, Baridih, Kadma, Agrico and Sonari have been damaged. Waterlogging has also been reported at several places. The district administration needs to ensure that slag aggregate is supplied and spread at identified locations in time to repair the dilapidated and muddy roads and pathways leading to the pandals,” KDPS president Achintam Gupta said.Gupta said puja committees had faced considerable inconvenience last year after the slag supplier stopped work midway, forcing pandal hoppers to walk through muddy pathways.The stretches identified for urgent repairs include the Tatanagar railway station-Pursudih road, Mango-Dimna and Mango-Azadnagar main roads, Kasidih roundabout and the road near Karandih railway crossing.The organisers also sought adequate street lighting around the pandals. “Additional street lights are required in Karandih, Sopodera, Pursudih and Bagbera. The requirement should be assessed in advance and installation completed before the puja,” KDPS working president Bhupender Singh said.Traffic management was another major concern. Organisers said several prominent pandals were now being opened to the public during the first three days of the festival, leading to heavy traffic and long jams on roads approaching the venues.“Traffic regulation measures need to be put in place from the very beginning,” KDPS general secretary Ashutosh Singh said.ADM (law and order) Mukesh Machua, who attended the meeting, assured organisers that their demands would be examined and addressed in a time-bound manner.
