BMC’s pothole-fixing machines lie unused

Though commuters face a tough time on pothole-riddled roads, the three pothole-filling machines bought by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) are likely to remain unused.

Though commuters face a tough time on pothole-riddled roads, the three pothole-filling machines bought by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) are likely to remain unused.

The civic standing committee has not considered the proposal to appoint a contractor for the operation of said machines.

The machines were bought in 2008 for the island city, and western and eastern suburbs, but were lying unused since 2009. In 2012, the corporation decided to put these to use and floated tenders for the same. However, since then, no contractor has yet been appointed.

Civic standing committee chairman Rahul Shewale said, “We won’t approve the proposal until the concerned additional commissioner responsible for the roads department does not appear in the meeting and give a justification. There are several issues about bad roads and delayed administrative process that need to be discussed.”

Rais Shaikh, corporator and member of the committee, said, “The rates to fill a pothole through these machines are lower than existing rates. If the contractor was appointed after tenders were floated, this reality would have been exposed, which is why the administration has been delaying.”The proposal is likely to be taken for discussion next week.