Pithoragarh, Dec 21 (PTI) Several public works agencies started spraying a mix of lime powder and salt on the roads in Pithoragarh district on Thursday to rid them of frost, following a road accident that took three lives the previous day, officials said.
The exercise was begun a day after three persons including a father and a son were killed when their car slipped off the road near Patela bend due to frost and fell into a deep gorge.
A combination of lime powder and salt, which helps the frost to melt, is being spread over all the roads here, including the national highways by the Public Works Department (PWD), Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), Pithoragarh District Magistrate Reena Joshi said. “We had already issued orders to these agencies on November 17, asking them to install signboards at frost-ridden roads, spread lime and salt on frost and give information of the work to District Disaster Management Officer, Pithoragarh,” Joshi said.
“All these road construction and maintaining agencies have been have been reminded of earlier orders and asked to act with urgency to avoid further road accidents due to frost,” she added.
“Signboards at entry points of frost-ridden roads have been installed by the BRO which has also started spreading lime powder and salt to help melt the frost,” said Pithoragarh’s District Disaster Management officer Bhupendra Singh Mahar.
“They will have to do it every two days to keep the roads free of frost,” he said.
The BRO look after the maintenance of the Dharchula-Pithoragarh road on which the accident occurred on Wednesday and the NHAI looks after the condition of the Pithoragarh to Ghat road. PTI COR ALM RPA
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.