After cancelling road concreting tenders worth Rs 58 billion, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation has invited fresh tenders worth Rs 60.79 billion, increasing the budget by Rs 2 billion crore. In the new tenders, the civic body specifies the use of ‘porous concrete’ (which absorbs or lets rain water percolate, releasing it in drainage) in key locations to avoid flooding during the monsoon.

Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) P Velrasu said, “Porous concrete will absorb rainwater within two minutes. We will use it on side straps, footpaths and above drainage lines so that water doesn’t collect on roads when it rains heavily.”

The BMC has issued three separate tenders for the city, eastern suburbs and the western suburbs. The earlier ones were scrapped because of poor response. These road concreting projects will be carried out in areas in the western suburbs like Santa Cruz East and West, Andheri East and West, Malad, Goregaon, Kandivali and Borivali.

Every year, especially during monsoon, the BMC is targeted over pothole-riddled roads, which have become the key point of contention considering the city will soon witness civic elections. Under the road concreting tenders, around 400 km of road network will be improved.

In fresh tenders, 71 km of road network is in the island city, for which nearly Rs 12.33 billion would be spent, while Rs 8.46 billion would be spent on 70 km of roads in the eastern suburbs and Rs 40 billion on concreting 275 km of roads in the western suburbs.

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