Pune: Citizens and activists staged a protest at Jai Hind Chowk in Ghorpadi for two hours on Friday against the bad condition of roads in the area and elsewhere within the Pune Cantonment Board (PCB) limits. They said internal roads, including those in army residential areas, were filled with potholes and the cantonment authorities had done little to nothing to address the issue in the last few months. The group alleged PCB authorities fill up potholes with murum, which proves ineffective in monsoon rain.
The bad roads were a direct reason for traffic congestion through the day in Ghorpadi, protesters added. “Potholes were fixed the same way on Friday as well and I cannot understand the logic behind it. PCB should opt for a better solution to address the issue.
Cantonment authorities are exhibiting a lackadaisical approach to deal with road issues,” said Sanjay Kawade, an activist from Ghorpadi. Protesters said the 1.5km stretch from Ghorpadi Circle to the railway line had big potholes, where rainwater accumulated even after a drizzle.
“There is no proper drainage line to clear the water from the areas,” they said. Auto driver Danesh Thoke of Ghorpadi said, “Why can’t cantonment officials visit the areas to understand our plight?” Activist Avinash Kawade blamed the cantonment’s “laidback attitude”. “We face the same situation every monsoon.
The last two years were slightly better because of reduced rainfall. This year, it has been a nightmare,” he said. Resident Lucy Anthony said, “We experience traffic congestions through the day.
It is because of potholes, which make vehicular movement sluggish. Commuters waste hours in the traffic .” Nikhil Bankar, a trader from Ghorpadi, said, “All roads are in a bad shape except the ones used by senior army officers of the Southern Command.
Cantonment officials always pass the buck and say roads come under different authorities. All agencies should work in tandem and ensure citizens’ safety and comfort.” Subrat Pal, PCB chief executive officer, did not respond to phone calls and text messages till the time of going to press.
However, a senior official from the PCB’s engineering department told TOI, "We have floated a tender to repair roads and the work will begin soon. We repaired the Ghorpadi stretch a few times using murum material, but it did not prove effective because of continuous rainfall. ” We also published the following articles recently BJP MLA says potholes reign on city roads BJP MLA Kishore Kanani addressed the worsening roads in Surat, worsened by monsoon rains, in a letter to the municipal commissioner.
With complaints of massive potholes causing traffic issues, he demanded urgent action from the Surat Municipal Corporation, criticizing their inefficiency and poor quality of ongoing repair works. The Pothole Paradox: NMC Claims Its Repairing More, Roads Remain Broken A survey by Nagpur Municipal Corporation unearthed 714 potholes on 451 roads, highlighting severe infrastructure issues. Despite claims of fixing 2,298 potholes, many roads remain perilous with Dharampeth being the worst-hit.
Motorists face significant dangers, prompting calls for faster, more sustainable repair solutions from frustrated citizens. 2k potholes filled in 9 days: MCG The Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) has repaired 2,076 potholes on internal roads within nine days after launching a campaign. Despite these efforts, heavy rains have caused damage to newly built roads.
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