With the first deadline to cover potholes on city roads coming to an end on Monday, the BBMP has now come up with a new deadline: October 5.
The civic body was supposed to fill all potholes in all 198 wards by September 30. The additional commissioner (Administration) had issued orders to ward-level engineers on September 25 to cover all the potholes.
BBMP Standing Committee chairman of Ward-level Works (Public Works) A H Basavaraju said the work has been taken up at each ward at a cost of `5 lakh. It is going on in full swing, he added.
“We still missed the deadline. Now, we have set a new deadline and all the chief engineers at zonal level have been directed to monitor and file daily reports on the drive. The officials will be held responsible for not completing the drive. If the works are not completed by the new deadline, I will write to the BBMP Commissioner to take action against the officials,” Basavaraju stated.
On Monday, BBMP engineers filled 863 potholes in Bommanahalli Zone, 210 in East Zone and 60 in Yelahanka Zone. Basavarju said reports are awaited as far as other zones are concerned.
Mayor B S Sathyanarayana, on the other hand, is hopeful of meeting the deadline this time.
“Five days’ deadline is a tough task in the entire BBMP limits. The reports that have come, so far, state that the engineers concerned have put in great efforts and have covered more roads. The work is still going on and we will fix potholes on 300 km of major roads in the city,” he said.
Superintendent engineer (Major Roads) K T Nagaraj said they faced problems in covering 300 km of roads due to traffic movement. “The work has to be taken up only at night and sometimes, labourers don’t turn up. We still managed to cover 1,43, 790 square metres. The biggest work was carried out between Rajajinagar Entrance and Khoday Circle, measuring 8,659 sq m, in West Zone. This was followed by 6,050 sq m at K H Road and 3,600 sq m, covering Wilson Garden 10th Cross, 12th Cross and police station, in South Zone. In East Zone, there was a stretch of 5,600 sq m from Old Airport Road to Suranjandas Road and Trinity Circle. The pothole filling and road works are ongoing processes,” Nagaraj said.
According to the BBMP technical team’s report compiled on September 18, the Palike had filled 27,740 potholes and remaining 11,614 still had to be filled. In Rajarajeshwarinagar Zone itself, 3,669 potholes and 3,597 potholes located in South Zone are yet to be covered.