Residents of KBR demand to solve the problem of leaving Chegem-2

Residents of the village of Chegem-2 in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) state their readiness to block the bypass section of the Highway "Kavkaz", if the authorities fail to solve the problem of leaving the village.

The villagers complain that because of the bypass section of the highway Rostov-Baku built six months ago they can get out of Chegem-2 along the only road. This creates huge inconveniences for the 12,000-strong population of the village, said the authors of the open letter sent on March 4 to Aslan Dyshekov, Minister of Motor Transport and Highways of the KBR, and to some other officials.

"People face huge problems when getting to the highway. We're all the time promised to intervene in the situation; however, the things are still there," Martin Pekov, a local resident, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Those wishing to get to the capital of the republic have to travel a long way, said Lyucana Kumysheva, a villager of Chegem-2. "We can't leave or enter the village. To go to Nalchik, we have almost to get to Baksan and turn around there," she said.

As reported by Arsen Kudaev, Deputy Minister of Transport, Communications and Roads of the KBR, the highway is supervised by the Administration of North-Caucasian Highways: "Even if we make a decision on this matter, we can't spend a penny, because the Administration is the owner." He added that the authorities would not allow any blocking of the highway.