Hyderabad: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation officials have been turning a blind eye to municipal administration and urban development minister K.T. Rama Rao’s instruction to take up pothole filling on a priority basis.
The minister, during a review meeting before monsoon set in, had asked the corporation officials to focus on road repairs and finalise tenders immediately. Ignoring his instructions, the corporation has neither invited short tenders nor filled up the potholes scientifically. The pothole filling by unqualified outsourcing employees rather than providing relief has been giving back breaking experience.
During recent rainfall, 6,511 potholes have formed across the city. While corporation officials claimed that the pothole filling has been going on at a brisk pace, sources claimed that the field staff have been just dumping bituminous (BT) mix into the potholes. The unqualified 80 instant repairs teams have been filling up about 200 potholes on an average daily. Officials claimed that the corporation has only one B.T Hot Mix Plant at Chudi Bazaar. Supplying BT to different parts of the city was causing delay in taking up repair works.
A senior GHMC official said that it had been noticed that the ground level staff had been dumping BT mix in the potholes directly which is not sustainable. The civic body has now decided to motivate the ground level staff by conducting orientation classes regarding the scientific methods on how to fill potholes in order to improve the quality of city roads. He said rather than dumping BT mix into the pothole, GHMC has asked the workers to make it even by cutting the road around potholes in a square shape and then use BT, BT Emulsion and Shellmac cold mix depending on the requirement.
When asked about status of tenders, official said “instructions were issued to engineering officials to set up temporary B.T Hot Mix plant at Yapral, Fathullaguda, Khaitlapur and other GHMC sites by calling short tenders in three days or to arrange temporary BT Hot Mix Plants in a week to ten days.” He also said that heavily damaged roads, however, will be restored only when dry weather conditions prevail.
The GHMC official said that during the recent heavy downpour, the civic body had asked the officials to use Shellmac cold mix to fill the potholes as it can be strengthened within minutes. He said even though it is six times more expensive than normal BT mix, it is highly recommended during monsoon. He also said the GHMC had asked the officials to fill the potholes immediately after they are identified and in case of failure stringent action will be initiated.
