In preparation for Ganeshotsav, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is launching a comprehensive campaign to repair potholes across Mumbai, a city that experiences a significant increase in vehicular traffic during the festivities, including the movement of Ganesh idol processions. Civic engineers have been instructed to address all potholes, with additional officers being deployed to enhance monitoring on the ground.
On Thursday, Abhijit Bangar, the Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects), held a meeting with engineers from the civic roads department, directing them to complete all pothole repairs before Ganeshotsav begins on September 7. Following positive results from using mastic asphalt in previous repairs, Bangar urged the continued use of this method in the upcoming pothole-fixing drive.
To address pothole complaints, one sub-engineer has been assigned to each of Mumbai's 227 municipal wards to oversee the repair work being carried out by contractors. Additionally, the BMC had appointed 18 contractors ahead of the monsoon season to manage pothole repairs across the city's 24 municipal wards.
During the meeting, Bangar emphasized the importance of field presence by assistant engineers, executive engineers, and deputy chief engineers to ensure that all roads prone to potholes are inspected and repaired before the Ganesh festivities begin. He also stressed the need for ensuring the availability and proper functioning of mastic cookers in all wards, and urged special attention to contractors to guarantee a consistent supply of mastic.
According to BMC data, between June 1 and August 14, the civic body recorded 16,162 potholes in the city and its suburbs, with 16,005 already repaired. Notably, 42 percent of these potholes were reported on the two main highways in Mumbai: 3,400 on the Eastern Express Highway (EEH) and 3,386 on the Western Express Highway (WEH).