Roads in Mumbai will be pothole-free before Ganesh festival: BJP ministers

Mumbai, Aug 22 (PTI) Roads in Mumbai will be free of potholes before the Ganesh festival which is going to start from August 27, BJP ministers and city MLAs Ashish Shelar and Mangal Prabhat Lodha assured on Friday.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has received some 8,000 complaints of potholes so far, said Maharashtra Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar, who is also the guardian minister for the city.

He had directed civic and other agencies to ensure that all potholes on the city roads are filled up within three days, he said.

"Due to heavy rains in the past few days, potholes have appeared across Mumbai. Citizens have raised complaints. I have instructed the civic body, MSRDC (Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation), MMRDA (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority), BPT (Mumbai Port Trust) and other authorities to ensure that every pothole on highways, arterial and internal roads is fully repaired before the Ganesh festival begins," he said, after reviewing preparations for the festival with senior officials.

Talking to reporters elsewhere, Skill Development Minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha said BMC officials have started repair works in the city. "Before the Ganesh festival starts, the roads will be repaired," he added.

Shelar chaired a review meeting with BMC commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, traffic police officials, MSRDC, MMRDA, Slum Redevelopment Authority and railway representatives, along with former corporators. The BMC had received as many as 8,000 pothole complaints, he said, asking officials to submit completion reports once repairs are made.

Officials were instructed to use the 'mastic asphalt technology' for road repair as it has proven more effective. Specific directions were also issued for urgent filling of potholes on flyovers in Vakola, Vikhroli and Goregaon to ease congestion. If MSRDC fails to act immediately, the civic body would take up the work, the minister said. PTI ND KRK