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Lack of Roads in Ninotsminda District Villages

July 4, 2008

Gulo Kokhodze, Ninotsminda

The lack of road continues to be a great problem for the residents of the Ninotsminda district. Local authorities state that soon the problem will be at least partially resolved. However, the incomplete resolution of the problem means that the roads will be repaired only in several villages of the district.

The central high-way of Akhalkalaki-Ninotsminda has already been repaired and paved. But still the roads to villages remain in the most terrible shape; it is so bad that the only source of transportation for locals remain sledges and carts.

There is great difference between the luxurious car driving at high speeds and the pace of per horse power cart. Grandfather Abo does not care about jeep: “first of all I cannot drive a car,” smiled the old man and “the road is so much ruined in my village that within one week that luxurious car will turn into a henhouse.”

A total of 135 thousand GEL was allocated in the Ninotsminda district budget for the rehabilitation of roads in 2008. The roads were repaired in the villages of Mamzara, Eshtia, Gondura, Dilipi, Didi Khanchali and Patara Khanchali.

“90 thousand GEL out of total sum will be spent on the rehabilitation of the town streets. The rest of the budget was divided among villages-26, 000 GEL was allocated for the villages of Mamzara, Didi Gondura, Patara Gondura and Dolipi; 12, 000 GEL was apportioned for Didi Khanchali and  Patara Khanchali; 7,000 GEL will be spent on Eshtia, Torija, Uchmana,” said Suren Mosoian, Ninotsminda district governor.

Locals claim that the money apportioned for the rehabilitation of the roads will still not be enough to repair but one-third of the roads at the most. 

“The roads are so ruined here that even 1,350 thousand GEL will not be enough for them. The roads have not been graveled for many years. Even heavy duty trucks cannot reach the mountainous villages,” said seventy-one-year-old Gabriel Esoian, a resident of the village of Khanchali.

“Has anybody remembered us? I do not think so. Nobody has cared about us for such long time that we do hold onto hope they will pave the roads,” said Gaiane Tonakanian, a resident of the village of Gondura.

“We still use horses and carts. People collect harvest from gardens from the distance of ten kilometers and sometimes we have to carry the crops on our backs,” said Larisa Baboian, a resident of Khanchali.

“The roads in our village are in much worse conditions than for example in the village of Didi Khanchali. If we have to transport our sick people and pregnant women to the town, their conditions are becoming worse,” complained villagers from Aragiali.

Local authority state the repair-works are carried out at high standard. “The roads will be covered with small stones. We cannot do more with the allocated money. I submitted the project about paving the Pushkini Street and it required over two million GEL. We cannot afford such expenses at this time,” said the district governor.

Local residents smile when on-going repair-works are assessed as being of “high-standard”.
They are surprised with such claims: “That is lie; nothing is being done. I wonder if they are smiling themselves when they go about making such statements.”

Suren Mosoian does not agree with the locals and states that people can move by cars in the villages.

Villagers dream about well-graveled roads; asphalt is a reoccurring dream for them. The horseshoes will still be useful and sooner or later the wheels of the carts will move better on the newly graveled roads.
 

 

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