Karnataka HC directs NHAI to inspect quality of pothole filling work

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and its contractors were ordered by the Karnataka High Court to perform an inspection on the quality of the pothole filling or repair work they were doing. They were also ordered to provide a thorough report within four weeks. The decision was made by the bench, which was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) citing Bengaluru's poor road conditions and included Chief Justice P B Varale and Justice Ashok S Kinagi. The city's civic body, BBMP, reported to the HC regarding the progress of the completed pothole-filling work. It was claimed that 13,843 of the 25,032 potholes that were found had been repaired. There were 6,689 potholes that will be filled in approximately four weeks, and many more that were in various states of repair. The HC observed that despite the PIL being in existence for six years, several decisions from the HC issued over the years, and numerous reports and affidavits provided by the BBMP, the road conditions in Bengaluru city is not very positively changed and the unfortunate sufferers are the citizens of the city. The court, which also pointed to deaths due to potholes, said, This court has observed in various orders that the condition of roads and particularly potholes led to unfortunate loss of precious human lives. It also noted during the hearing that BBMP seemed to be engaged in cosmetic surgery of roads in the city. The court was informed that civic body officials themselves file a satisfaction certificate after the private contractors complete the work in response to a query on the calibre of the repair work carried out by the contractors to whom the BBMP has delegated the assignment. However, the HC is not pleased with this procedure, stated: There is no independent third party assessment of the work undertaken by private contractors assigned by BBMP. A senior engineer was then assigned to conduct the survey and write a report, or the NHAI head engineer was instructed to personally examine the work. The NHAI official will inspect the pothole repair work to see if it adheres to the contract and is done well. After that, it will express an unbiased judgement of the pothole-filling efforts and offer recommendations. The report will also state whether the contractors and the BBMP have failed in their obligations. The work already underway will not be halted by the NHAI survey, the court ruled, and BBMP may proceed. In order to address specific concerns it has made regarding the pothole filling activity, the HC had specifically instructed the BBMP to submit a report. The court has a few issues, including why the BBMP did not begin the process of hiring a replacement agency even after the initial contract ended in January 2022 and why it did not renew the contract of the firm that was patching potholes with sophisticated gear. The BBMP provided a report on the various components of the pothole filling measures on Wednesday. One of these, according to the civic organisation, is the introduction of a smartphone app for users that uses GPS coordinates to find potholes. The BBMP and traffic police tested the programme, which was created by a private company, in May of this year, the court was informed. See also: Mumbai roads will be devoid of potholes in two years, says BMC Gurugram civic body to fill potholes on all roads by November 15