Mumbai roads turn into Swiss cheese

Pothole outside Mehboob studio in Bandra on July 9. Pic/Shadab khan

Within a week of the onset of heavy rain, potholes began to form on city roads. As of July 16, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has registered 5,814 potholes, with most being reported in the last week. Although the BMC claims to have filled more than 97 per cent of these potholes within 24 hours, it will now issue notices to sub-engineers for failing to address the potholes within the designated timeline.

Due to a delayed monsoon, the city experienced minimal rainfall in June. The first significant rain occurred on the night of June 7-8, which quickly turned city roads into patchy, pothole-ridden areas. Complaints about potholes surged, surpassing the 5,000 mark in recent days. By July 16, the BMC had received over 5,814 complaints and reported attending to 5,643 potholes. However, even high-level BMC officials remain dissatisfied with the results.

Screengrab of the MyBMCPotholeFixiT App

"Why wait for complaints about potholes? Many commuters suffer due to these bad patches before they are addressed. I have observed a large pothole at JVLR in Jogeshwari, a major junction. If this pothole had been attended to earlier, it wouldn't have grown so massive. There are other problematic areas that have come to my attention. We are sending notices to the concerned sub-engineers to explain why these potholes were not addressed sooner," said Abhijit Bangar, additional commissioner of the BMC. He emphasised that these notices are intended to ensure accountability rather than for punishment.

Citizens and activists remain sceptical of the BMC's claims due to past experiences. "The BMC's claims about addressing potholes are, as usual, questionable. Potholes are still prevalent across Mumbai, and the BMC often uses the excuse of waiting for dry spells to delay repairs," said Trivankuman Karnani, founder of the Mumbai North Central District Forum (MNCDF).

"BMC is filling up potholes quickly but only at few locations. Some wards are ignored even after complaining," said Mushtaq Ansari, founder of non profit Potholes Warriors.

Mumbai's road network spans 2,050 km, with 990 km concreted by 2022. The BMC began concreting 210 km in January 2022 and approved an additional 397 km in February 2023. Of the work initiated by February 2023, only 25 per cent has been completed. Currently, a tender process is underway for the remaining 400 km of roads.

Where to complain

The BMC has provided contact numbers for sub-engineers across 227 corporator wards. The first seven digits of the number are the same for all (9594723…). For example, if a pothole is in Dahisar Ward 1, the number is 9594723001; if in Colaba, the number is 9594723227.

Citizens can also register complaints through the MyBMCPotholeFixiT App, available for download on the Play Store. The BMC also addresses pothole complaints received via social media.

5,914
No. of potholes registered with BMC till July 16