Mumbai: Won't compensate for pothole, manhole accidents, says BMC

Even as the Supreme Court presses for compensation to kin and victims of pothole victims, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) commissioner flatly refuses to bear the responsibility in Mumbai. This came to light in the agenda ahead of BMC's general assembly meeting on Thursday. 

Former corporator, Abhishek Ghosalkar (whose tenure was from 2012 to 2017) had moved a notice of motion in September 2016 demanding that victims of accidents caused by potholes, open manholes or any BMC project be compensated. The motion was subsequently passed by the civic general assembly in 2016.

In his response to the motion that is part of the December House meeting agenda, the municipal commissioner has stated that the BMC will not compensate victims and kin of potholes and open manholes.

The civic body has a machinery in place to compensate victims and kin of tree-fall accidents. The administration's written response, which is signed by municipal commissioner, clearly states that contractors are responsible for making roads and there is provision for action against them in case of deaths or accidents.

"If there is any accident during the work period, they (the contractors) are responsible under General Contract Condition (GCC). If the road is not being maintained by a contractor, then it is the ward office's duty to maintain it. So it is not possible to make any policy to give any compensation in such circumstances," the administration said.

"According to Section 61(M) of the MMC Act, maintaining roads is the BMC's responsibility," says Shiv Sena's Ghosalkar. "But the civic body is not doing it properly. A woman and her child lost their life due to uneven paver block in last month. Dr Deepak Amarapurkar drowned into an open manhole last year. The BMC is responsible for this incidents. People are dying due to improper civil work. If they are sole breadwinners, who will take care of their families?"

He emphasized that BMC works are funded by taxpayers. "I am demanding compensation from taxpayers's money, but the administration is behaving like they have to give it from their own pockets," added Ghosalkar.

Another corporator, Rais Shaikh of the Samajwadi Party, joined in the demand saying, "Criminal cases should be filed against the concerned BMC officer, because it is ultimately his/her duty to ensure the safety of people. Even the compensation should be paid from the concerned officer's salary."

On November 24, Masha Sheikh and her six-month-old daughter were run over by a tanker, after their two-wheeler hit uneven paver blocks near Dadar station and they fell off. On December 6, the Supreme Court remarked that more people die in pothole-related accidents than on the border or in terror incidents. A report estimated that 14,936 people died between 2013 to 2017 in the country due to pothole-related accidents.