By Vishal Rana, Hamirpur
In a significant development aimed at resolving a long-standing public grievance, Member of Parliament and former Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur conducted a high-level review meeting with National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) officials in Hamirpur today. The meeting focused on the inordinate delay in the construction of National Highway-03, a project that has left the local populace in dire straits for several years.
The stretch of highway has become virtually impassable, causing severe hardship for residents. Commuting has turned into a nightmare, with even pedestrian movement being exceedingly difficult. The situation has been further exacerbated by construction debris encroaching onto adjoining private lands. Public frustration has boiled over, leading to the formation of protest committees and widespread demonstrations. In a powerful act of dissent, MLA From Adjoining constituency Dharampur, Chandrashekhar has been on a hunger strike for the past several days on this issue.
During the meeting, Thakur adopted a firm stance against the unnecessary delays and the resulting public inconvenience. He expressed strong dissatisfaction with the sluggish pace of work, terming it completely unacceptable and demanding immediate resolution. The MP reviewed the status of directives issued during his previous visit weeks ago and emphasized that all pending issues must be addressed on a priority basis.
Anurag Thakur specifically highlighted the slow progress on the Hamirpur-Sarkaghat section of NH-03, part of the larger Atari-Leh highway, which has been a persistent issue affecting local residents. He reiterated that any negligence or complacency would not be tolerated and issued strict instructions to the concerned officials to expedite the work without any further delay.
The 40-kilometer section of NH-03 will eventually connect to the Pathankot-Mandi National Highway and is designed to bypass five villages in the Hamirpur district—Thana Darogan, Barada, Cholathra, Kohlusiddh, and Avahdevi. This project is a crucial part of a larger 265-kilometer corridor, of which 141 kilometers have already been completed. The central government has sanctioned a substantial sum of ₹1,470 crores for the development of this critical infrastructure, underscoring its national importance.