Pune Municipal sets May 15 deadline to stop digging works on roads
PUNE: Citizens can hope for relief from road digging in about a fortnight as the Pune Municipal Corporation has set a deadline of May 15 to stop all such works.
Aniruddha Pavaskar, the head of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC)’s road department, told reporters, “Instructions have been given to those digging the roads to complete the job by May 15.”
The corporation officials claimed that the deadline had been set to streamline the works so that traffic was not affected and relay the roads before monsoon. The PMC officials stated they had this year given permission to dig up 350km of different roads.
The post-digging works, such as repairing footpaths, dividers, concreting and pothole-filling, will be carried out within the deadline wherever it is possible. No road works will be allowed unless it is an emergency.
Every year, roads are dug up for laying service lines such as stormwater drainage and water pipelines. As many as 26 agencies, including the telecom operators, electricity utility, cellphone operators, internet service providers and piped gas company, dig roads for laying pipes and cables. The civic body repairs the dug up roads.
Vivek Velankar of Sajag Nagrik Manch, a citizens’ group, said “The civic body sets the deadline but it has become just a formality. We have seen that deadlines were never met in the past. The works will continue even after the arrival of monsoon. Strict action should be taken against those not following the deadline.”
Last year, the delay in road repair and maintenance had caused major issues in the city. The pre-monsoon works were not completed on time, leading to increased potholes and traffic problems.
The elected members had tried to wash their hand of the situation. They claimed that the newly elected body did not get time to draft the budget and so the money needed for the work was not made available before monsoon.
Over 400 complaints regarding potholes and other road problems had reached the civic body in monsoon last year. Most of the contractors, who had dug up the roads, did not use the trenchless digging method. Big cuts to road surfaces had made it difficult for the civic body to carry out repairs.
Source : The Times Of India
