Efforts on to tackle pothole menace in Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy CM

Bengaluru, Aug 22 (PTI) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday acknowledged criticism over the pothole menace in the city, saying efforts are on to address it through both temporary and permanent solutions.

Shivakumar, who is also the Minister in-charge of Bengaluru development, made the remarks while replying to a discussion in the Assembly.

"There is a lot of criticism regarding potholes. I'm facing criticism from family members, friends, MLAs and others. I'm not rejecting it. There are thousands of potholes. To solve the problem of potholes in the city, we have created an opportunity for the public to bring to the attention of the authorities by sharing pictures and videos of pot holes," he said.

The Police department has also been asked to share a list of locations where potholes need to be fixed, he said. "About 10,000 potholes have been identified. As many as 5,377 potholes have been closed. We have formulated a programme to fill the remaining 5,000 potholes." Noting that these are temporary measures, the Deuty CM said arrangements are underway for permanent repairs with white and black topping of roads. "154 kms of road is being taken up for white topping work in the city at a cost of Rs 1,700 crore. These roads will last for 30 years." "The arterial sub roads will also be taken up under the white topping project. In the first phase, 632 km is being taken up, for which Rs 7,500 crore is being spent. DPR (Detailed Project Report) is also ready." Shivakumar added that a plan has been drawn up to invest about Rs 9,200 crore in road development and white topping. "A plan of Rs 690 crore has been made for blacktopping of 450 km of major arterial and sub arterial roads." Accusing both the BJP and Congress of "failing" to manage the garbage in Bengaluru city, Shivakumar claimed that there is a "big mafia" involved, which no government has been able to eliminate so far.

"The tender called during the BJP government was stayed by going to court. After the court's permission now, tenders have been called in packages for each Assembly constituency in the city to dispose of garbage," he said.

The government plans to set up garbage disposal units in four directions on the outskirts of Bengaluru, the Deputy CM said. At present, a site near Doddaballapur is being considered by acquiring about 100 acres of land from NICE, despite some local opposition.

"With the current new technology, the garbage can be emptied in three days by burning it to produce electricity and gas. They are also odor-free units. In Delhi it is in the city. Big companies are doing it," he said, adding that he had taken a team of officials to Chennai, Hyderabad, and Delhi to study. PTI KSU ROH