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SPEAK UP | Monsoon woes: A little planning may go a long way

That's what Mumbaikars feel, who dread travel during the season due to road conditions

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May 31 was the deadline set by the civic body to make city roads pothole-free
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Residents will have to brace up for a troublesome monsoon this year, as the civic body is way behind schedule in terms of monsoon preparedness. Around one-third of important resurfacing and repair work has not yet been taken up. With hardly two weeks left for the monsoon to arrive, the civic body will face a tough time dealing with a host of issues that are likely to crop up after a heavy spell of rains.

This year, monsoon is expected a little earlier than usual, and if that happens, the traffic condition of the city will go for a toss as a number of arterial as well as small roads may not be completed by then. Despite civic body's claims that it has given priority to arterial roads, Goregaon-Mulund Link Road, Dr BA Road, and SV Road among others are still incomplete.

While arterial roads and important stretches are given priority, the smaller roads and by lanes have not got enough attention. Every year, the BMC assures citizens of better roads and a flood–free monsoon, but the result has always been dismal. Mandatory road repair work has been delayed by contractors citing reasons like unavaibility of stone chips. The civic body also did not push the contractors to source raw materials from elsewhere. DNA spoke to a few residents and experts on the current scenario of roads in the city and what the BMC should have done.

Potholes are a common sight and citizens are troubled every year due to the road mess. BMC needs to address the issue carefully, coupled with proper planning. Even though contractors carry out the work, BMC is equally responsible. They need to ensure that roads are motorable by the time monsoon sets in.
Amisha Chauhan, Lower Parel

People have to bear the consequences due to the civic body's inability to finish its work on time. This is the case every year and serious steps need be taken regarding this. BMC should carry out repair work on only a certain number of roads at a given time.
Heena Raval, Charni Road.

The BMC does not carry out their tasks in a planned manner and with each passing day they want more power and area under them. What they need to realise is that with power comes responsibility which needs to be utilised properly. Also, many roads have been dug up all over the city and with the current condition of these roads, I highly doubt the BMC will be able to meet their deadline and make it motorable before the monsoon.
Kanish Mehta, Andheri

We cannot judge the BMC and say whether they are right or wrong. They too might be facing technical problems at their end. However, they should plan their projects accurately before implementation and should be more organised to avoid project delays in the future.
Jaideep Singh, Mahim

Monsoon is just a few weeks away and the malpractice of the BMC continues. Despite people facing inconvenience due to shoddy road work and choked drains, the road repair work is far from done. This just adds to the woes of the citizens, making it unsafe, specially for women and children. It's high time for the BMC to address these issues on an urgent basis and make the city a safer place.
Rohit Bhatia, Bandra

This is not the first time, the same problems are witnessed year after year. The roads are dug up and the repair work is never completed on time. Due to the civic body's inefficiency, we have to suffer the consequences. We cannot fully blame the BMC and its workers as they too might be facing hindrances.
Aarti Jaiswal, Elphinstone Road

The civic body's actions will lead to chaos as they are unplanned. The contractors leave their work unfinished and this leads to a major monsoon mess. Problems like water clogging due to choked drains are witnessed. BMC should chalk out a proper plan from the beginning and should adhere to it so that a flood-like situation can be avoided.
Prachita Manadhyn, Charni Road

If the time required to carry out the road repairs is six months, BMC begin their work three months before the deadline. This does not give them enough time to cover potholes and treat roads properly. They should begin their work a bit earlier. They need to learn from their mistakes made during the previous monsoon and plan accordingly.
Priya Singh, Churchgate

Expert speak

Potholes during monsoon and delay in completion of mandatory road repair work are not new. The same episode is repeated almost every year. However, this can be done away with timely completion of work. Civic engineers cannot be blamed every time for delay as there are several other factors that affect the entire process. Public representatives often interfere in the work carried out by civic engineers. They lose time in negotiating with them on unnecessary issues. Instead of blaming them for delay, we need to encourage them to do the work diligently. Civic officials, too, live in the same city and they do not want the road conditions to be below par.
Sudhir Badami, Civic Engineer and Urban Analyst

I do not think there is much difference between last year's road repair work as compared to this year. The pace of work also is the same. There are cases of potholes, roads lying dug up and uncleaned nullahs across the city. So, we can expect flooding and other issues at a few places during the monsoon. However, the civic body cannot be blamed alone as some of the roads are maintained by MMRDA as well. At many places, the resurfacing work has not been carried out and cases of potholes will arise if these are done at the last minute.
Bhaskar Prabhu, convenor, Mhiti Adhikar Manch

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