Nagpur: As cratered roads triggered public anger and a threat of agitation, Maharashtra Rail Infrastructure Development Corporation (MRIDC), or MahaRail, launched overnight repairs on a damaged stretch in Mominpura’s Prabhag 8.The work began late Saturday on the road connecting Garib Nawaz Masjid, Boriyapura, Motibagh and adjoining localities, where construction of pillars for the under-construction Y-shaped railway overbridge (ROB) had left the carriageway riddled with deep potholes. Residents said the damaged stretch posed a serious risk to motorists, particularly two-wheeler riders, and had led to several near-miss incidents during the monsoon.Congress corporator and standing committee member Wasim Khan marked the damaged portions and took up the issue with MRIDC engineers and senior officials. He warned that residents would stage a protest if repairs were not carried out immediately and held the executing agency responsible for any accident caused by the road’s condition. Hours later, MRIDC deployed workers to fill potholes and restore the damaged stretch.“The safety and convenience of citizens cannot be ignored in the name of infrastructure development. Agencies executing projects must also take responsibility for maintaining roads affected by their work,” Khan said.Residents welcomed the prompt response but questioned why repairs were undertaken only after political intervention. Many said repeated complaints over the past several weeks had failed to elicit any action despite the road’s deteriorating condition.The repairs come amid continuing criticism of the project, where temporary restorations have repeatedly failed. A recently repaired stretch had caved in within a day, raising questions over the quality of the restoration. MRIDC had attributed the damage to utility trenching and monsoon conditions, saying permanent reconstruction would be taken up after utility shifting and major construction work are completed.With the ROB project still underway, residents said temporary patchwork alone would not solve the problem unless backed by sustained maintenance and durable restoration.
