HC steps in to make your ride on Mumbai roads smoother in the rains

If you spot a pothole this monsoon in Mumbai, don’t just mutter under your breath and keep quiet. For, you may just have to pick up your mobile phone and send a message to the civic body concerned to get it fixed.

If you spot a pothole this monsoon in Mumbai, don’t just mutter under your breath and keep quiet. For, you may just have to pick up your mobile phone and send a message to the civic body concerned to get it fixed.

Taking the hassles faced by citizens during the rains into account, the Bombay high court (HC) has directed all municipal corporations and other authorities such as the MMRDA and MSRDC in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) to come up with a mechanism by June 30, using which prompt action can be taken on the complaints on roads.

The division bench of justice Abhay Oka and justice CV Bhadang has asked the authorities to make changes to their websites, so citizens can upload their complaints, along with photographs of pothole-ridden roads, and track the status of the action being taken.

The court wants the websites to be easily accessible using smartphones. The agencies have also been asked to upload the action taken reports on the websites and provide a toll-free number to raise the issues.

For cities such as Thane, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan-Dombivli and Mira-Bhayander, the municipal corporations concerned will have to provide the facility.