Storm Water Drain Being Laid, Pratap Nagar Road Work Gets Push

Nagpur: After multiple delays, cement concretisation has finally resumed on the remaining 1km stretch of the road from Pratap Nagar Square to Orange City Street T-Point. Nearly 75% of work is already done, but overlapping utility works, including electric cables, pipelines, and storm water drains, had stalled the project.With major hurdles now cleared, the Public Works Department (PWD) World Bank Division has begun digging to lay the storm water drain along the pending stretch. Once completed, the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) will undertake the final phase of road concretisation.
Currently, only one side of the road is open to traffic, leading to temporary congestion. Officials said the remaining work will now proceed without further interruptions and is expected to be completed soon.TOI had on November 14, 2025, reported that the last leg of concretisation had begun. However, storm drain construction proved to be the biggest bottleneck. Unseasonal rains further delayed the work.Kishore Uike, a local resident, said authorities should have done better planning. "Traffic jams have become routine, and there have been several near-misses due to the narrowed carriageway. The work should be expedited," he said.Owner of a garage located along the stretch noted that while the portion from Pratap Nagar Square to London Street (now Orange City Street) was completed quickly and is of good quality, the unfinished section has affected public perception of the entire project. "Initially, we were thrilled about getting a new road. But this prolonged delay has turned into misery. With the reduced road width, many two-wheelers dangerously swerve near my garage entrance just to overtake vehicles," he said.A senior NMC official told TOI that the civic body plans to install shoulder paver blocks to improve road safety and durability. The PWD will also lay Pavement Quality Concrete (PQC) over the sewer slab, but only after it completes the main road concretisation to the designated level to ensure uniformity.The official said during a recent meeting, the NMC had objected that PQC cannot be laid directly over the drainage slab. Now, the design proposed by the PWD includes provisions for PQC while accounting for future requirements. Once the storm water drain work is completed, the slab height will be adjusted proportionately to match the road level. After achieving proper alignment, NMC will take over and complete the remaining road work to ensure a smooth, consistent surface.