Says ward engineer, responding to why city's roads go to the dogs despite funds earmarked for their repairs; promises to repair 45 Bandra roads by mid-May after MiD DAY's report
Says ward engineer, responding to why city's roads go to the dogs despite funds earmarked for their repairs; promises to repair 45 Bandra roads by mid-May after MiD DAY's report
During the course of its campaign initiated to improve the deplorable condition of the worst roads in the city, MiD DAY had listed four Bandra roads that are in desperate need of repair. The H Ward officials, spurred into action by the campaign, have promptly drawn up a list of 45 roads in Bandra that they promise will be repaired by mid-May. This list includes the four roadsu00a0-- routes TPS3 and TPS4, K C Marg Road, Ambedkar Road and Chuim Village Roadu00a0-- mentioned in our report ('12 roads that make up one hell of a ride',u00a0 April 18). 
Pathetic:u00a0The Town Planning Scheme Road is dug up, and has more
u00a0than five potholes, the largest being 85 inches.u00a0 
The KC Marg road is not made of cement and the biggest pothole on
u00a0this road was 35 inches. file pics
Following the article, N Sakpal, assistant engineer of H (West) Ward, instructed his subordinates to address the situation. Soon, a list of 45 roadsu00a0 from the region was drawn up, all of which are now undergoing repair. Sakpal said, "For Bandra, we have drawn up a list of 45 roads that are in abysmal condition.
We will undertake repair work on these roads, completing it before the monsoon," added Sakpal. Asked why the repair work is ineffectual and short-lived in spite of the hefty expenditure, Sakpal said that there are no guarantee periods for potholes.u00a0 "The amount spent is not in our hands. It is determined by the degree of disrepair that road is in.It is not implausible for roads to need repair repeatedly. There are no guarantee periods for potholes," he said. Sakpal further continued, "The reparation work on these roads will begin from April 25, and it is expected to be completed by contractors by May 15 of this year."
TPS3, TPS4
The BMC has revealed that a whopping Rs 2.83 crore was spent on the repair of TPS3 and TPS4 roads last year in May. Repair notwithstanding, the road has returned to its earlier deplorable condition.u00a0Questioned about these roads, Sakpal said, "This year too we are going to spend a huge sum of money on the same road. Before the onset of the monsoons, we are going to redo the repair work, so that commuters can be ensured a smoother ride during the monsoon season."
Sakpal acceded that every year the roads are found in utter disrepair right before the monsoon, even though large sums are poured into repair work. "There are many potholes which need to be filled every year before the monsoon. The work on the roads is always done in haste, as a result of which the quality is below the mark," he said.
Ambedkar Road
Asked about Ambedkar Road in Bandra, which was also listed as one of the worst affected, Sakpal revealed, "No repair work has been done in the last five years on Ambedkar Road." He added, "The guarantee period since the last repair work is yet to be completed. We have also not undertaken any repair work in Danpada."
KC Marg Road
The responsibility for KC Marg, remains unclaimed. A N Basme, the superintending engineer of MMRDA said, "KC Marg was taken up by MMRDA for a project. Thereafter it was handed back to BMC in 2007. Hence, we are not accountable to anybody for maintenance of the road. We are not responsible for the potholes there." Meanwhile, Sakpal angrily responded, "That road is not under BMC. MMRDA is still responsible for work on that road. If they claim that responsibility has been handed over to BMC, then they should furnish documents."
Make good use of taxes paid by us
Despite collecting crores from the aam aadmi in various ways in the form of taxes, the entire stretch of Suhasini Pawaskar Road from Western Express Highway near the toll naka to Vaishali Nagar, Dahisar (East), is in a pathetic condition for the last few years. The authorities have not spent enough money to maintain this road. As a result, numerous potholes still dot it, making it one of the worst routes to travel on. Using this route is a nightmare for every commuter and early action on this back-breaking road will be highly appreciated.u00a0
-- Chidananda Poojary, via e-mail
Potholes at Thakur Village
I would like to inform you of the pathetic condition of roads at Thakur Village. Last year MiD DAY had conducted a survey for the biggest pothole on the city's roads and the prize went to a road from Thakur Village, Kandivli (East). Since then, the condition of the road has remained the same, with no action taken to improve them. Moreover, the temporary work done to fill up the potholes has created uneven layers on the road making it even more difficult to travel on. There are several others like me who face the same problem day in and out. I would be thankful to you if you can do something through your newspaper to improve the condition of these roads.u00a0
-- Anand Dhoot, via e-mail
Clear the clogged roads
I reside near Jangid Estate, Mira Road and have been facing a serious problem of water logging every year because of the road connecting the highway. The drainage system is also only dug on one side and is completely clogged. I would request the municipal corporation to look into the issue, as it causes several problems. Last year, we faced a delay in taking my neighbour's father-in-law to the hospital because of the water logging. I am sure if proper and timely action is taken, then such mishaps can be avoided.u00a0u00a0
-- Rajesh Rajput, via e-mail
Regularise flow of traffic on WEH
The stretch of road after crossing over the Jogeshwari flyover on the Western Express Highway towards Borivli is always congested at any time of the day. To drive right from this point to reach the Goregaon flyover, which is hardly any distance, takes a good 12 minutes. There is always a perennial bottleneck here and it is not understood why this bottleneck is not removed once for all? Further, we find dumpers, JCBs, heavy trucks, container trailers and outstation buses plying on this stretch, which hampers traffic. Why can't the RTO regularise the movements of these vehicles? Surely, this will ease the congestion. There should be some restrictions for such vehicles or it will always be a pain to travel on this highway.
--u00a0TG Venkatnarayanan, via e-mail
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