Pune: A two-day deadline has been set for civic officials to repair potholes across Pimpri Chinchwad amid growing complaints of damaged roads.Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) commissioner Vijay Suryawanshi held a review meeting with civic engineers on Saturday and directed divisional executive engineers, deputy engineers and junior engineers to inspect roads in their respective jurisdictions and take up repairs immediately.Officials were told not to wait for complaints and conduct regular field inspections, identify potholes and other road hazards and initiate corrective measures.A senior PCMC official said the engineers have also been told to ensure that pothole repairs remain durable, safe and meet prescribed quality standards.According to civic data, 1,153 (64.74%) of the reported potholes have been repaired since June, while around 628 remain pending. Ward A, covering Talawade, parts of Chikhali, Rupeenagar and Borhadewadi, has the highest backlog, with only around 10% of reported potholes repaired. Ward G, covering Pimpri, Kalewadi and Thergaon, has recorded the highest repair rate, with only around 23% of reported potholes pending.“The officials concerned have been directed to regularly inspect the situation in their respective jurisdictions and take necessary action without waiting for complaints. Responsibility has been fixed for each area, and any delay or negligence in the works will invite strict action as per rules,” Suryawanshi said.A senior PCMC official, who attended the meeting, said the additional municipal commissioner, chief engineer and city engineers were directed to closely monitor these repairs. They would daily conduct region-wise reviews of pothole repairs and works related to railings, road dividers and footpaths and submit progress reports to the municipal commissioner.Residents, however, said the civic administration should have expedited repairs much earlier, as road conditions have worsened following the recent spell of rain.“There is a heavy vehicular movement because of industries in our locality. During the recent rain, potholes across the area were filled with water, putting motorists, particularly two-wheeler riders, at risk,” said Shrikant Jadhav, a Talawade resident.Sachin Kale, a Chikhali resident, said several roads in his area remain narrow and underdeveloped despite provisions in the development plan. “We already have poor and narrow roads. They have further deteriorated in the recent rain. The civic body should have carried out repairs before the monsoon, but there was little movement on the ground, making the situation even worse for residents,” he said.A senior civic official admitted that pre-monsoon preparedness and road repair works were affected in several areas. “The shortage of bitumen due to the war in West Asia, municipal elections and subsequent procedures for forming the civic body and standing committee, as well as delays in tender approvals, affected the repair works. Besides, the govt order under which applications for permission to dig roads for laying MNGL lines were deemed approved if not processed within 24 hours. It also added to the problem. A large number of such permissions were granted, leaving repair works on several stretches pending,” he said.A private agency appointed by the PCMC to survey city roads and recommend repairs had identified around 305.9 km of roads requiring repairs earlier this year. Based on the assessment, the civic body had estimated a budget of Rs 243 crore for the work. However, most of these works remained incomplete due to delayed approvals and fund allocations.
