SEREMBAN: The road construction project from Kampung Geddes to Felda Palong in Jempol, through Sungai Kelai, will create an alternative route that can be used by the Felda and Orang Asli communities.
Jempol MP Datuk Shamshulkahar Mohd Deli (pix) said that once completed, the road will cut travel time, especially in the event of an emergency, thus ensuring their safety.
“The new road will connect Kampung Geddes to Kampung Sungai Kelai in Palong, a distance of 10 kilometres, meaning there will be alternative routes there.
“The Sungai Kelai village consists of the Orang Asli community in the Palong 12 and Palong 13 areas. When this project is completed there will be three routes, namely the one to Felda Palong and Ladang Bahau and the existing road to Keratong,” he told Bernama.
The project was among several announced by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, in his speech when tabling the motion on the 12th Malaysia Plan 2021-2025 Mid-Term Review (12MP MTR) in the Dewan Rakyat on Monday, to ensure the well-being of the people in rural areas and the interior.
State Public Works Department director Ir Wan Hasnan Wan Musa said the construction of the road completes the road infrastructure network in the district, providing comfort to users since the existing one is a narrow dirt road.
He said under the First Rolling Plan (RP1) of the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP), another road construction project was approved connecting Sungai Sebaling to Bahau, Jempol which when completed will link up Kg Geddes-Sg.Kelai-Felda Palong.
Meanwhile, Senior Lecturer at the Faculty of Economics and Business at Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, Dr Umi Hamidaton Mohd Soffian Lee, said the construction of the road network is very necessary as a catalyst for development in the region and the surrounding Felda and village areas.
She said it would also help stimulate the economy of the local community, especially in the agricultural sector, besides also supporting the basic goals of the National Transport Policy. -Bernama