Development works in the city are moving at a sluggish pace due to the paucity of cement. A concerned Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) has now asked contractors to take steps so that they can keep up the pace of construction works awarded to them. Availability of cement in general has become a problem in the city due to transportation issues. VMC officials said that with the High Court ing its whip on overloaded trucks, the supply of cement done by packing trucks beyond their capacity had taken a hit. "It will take some time before arrangements are made by transporters as they will now need more trucks to carry cement. The problem is temporary in nature and we expect that it will not last long," VMC Commissioner MK Das said. VMC authorities have meanwhile asked contractors to make alternative arrangements so that work does not suffer. Another suggestion given to the contractors is that they should use the long festivities holidays to ensure that they stocks enough cement. "Work is slow in this period as workers take a long break. The period can be used to procure cement to ensure that work continues at a brisk pace when the workers return," Das added.