A labour shortage caused by migrant workers from West Bengal and Assam failing to return following the Assembly elections, coupled with a scarcity of materials such as bitumen due to the conflict in West Asia, has hindered the ongoing widening of Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu Road in Kozhikode.
An official attached to the Kerala Road Fund Board told The Hindu that migrant workers from West Bengal and Assam account for a large part of the workforce, and that construction experienced setbacks when they returned to their home States for voting. While a section has returned to work and construction is expected to be revived soon, the scarcity of bitumen is yet to be addressed.
According to the official, tarring in some areas, installation of traffic signs and street lamps, footpath construction, and laying of slabs over drains remained unfinished. Preparations for the second phase of the Malaparamba-Vellimadukunnu road project are under way, he added.
While the proposal for widening the 8.34-km Mananchira-Vellimadukunnu road by 24 metres, under the Kozhikode City Road Improvement Project, was announced in 2008–2009, construction commenced only in June 2025. Eight months later, Public Works Minister P.A. Mohamed Riyas inaugurated the first phase of the 5.32-km Mananchira-Malaparamba stretch on March 9, despite it not being fully complete.
