Rains in Kolkata expose pothole-riddled roads, waterlogging adds to woes – Times Now

Kolkata: With the onset of the monsoon in Kolkata, heavy rainfall has lashed several parts of the city. Several roads have been damaged and craters potholes have appeared due to waterlogging. The arterial roads of the city are in dire need of immediate repair work.

Some of the urban roads that connect the major parts of the city have been ravaged by heavy rainfall. The roads include Asutosh Mukherjee Road in Bhowanipore, Harish Mukherjee Chittaranjan Avenue, APC Roy Road, Motilal Gupta Road in Behala, and NSC Bose Road in Tollygunge, among others.

According to civic body officials, the major reason behind the poor condition of the roads is that some of these arterial roads were dug up much before the arrival of monsoon for laying of water pipes and carrying out other underground repair work. Stretches of Harish Mukherjee Road surrounding SSKM Hospital and Ashutosh Mukherjee road were also dug up for laying water pipes, The Times of India reported.

KMC officials on repairing the damaged roads

As per a Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) official, roads department had started a drive to repair the dug up roads. However, the same could not be achieved before the arrival of the monsoon, said the official.

An official of the KMC civil engineering department said that several potholes have appeared throughout the stretch of Chittaranjan Avenue. He further added that the KMC roads department will have to undertake thorough repair work.

Another senior KMC official in the roads department explained that several roads were damaged because of the incessant rainfall. Moreover, the civic body had already initiated the patchwork repair on several stretches of major roads where prominent potholes had appeared, he said. “We are waiting for a few dry spells when we will be able to properly repair the roads ravaged by rains,” added the KMC official.

Commuters and local residents narrated their ordeal

Several motorists complained to the local area police and the KMC about the terrible condition of the major urban roadways. Some even demanded for an immediate repair work. “I couldn’t figure out the pothole as it was filled with rainwater. My bike overturned but I was saved somehow,” Abir Bose, a resident of Girish Park said. 

Another resident of Tollygunge, Sumit Jaiswal, who is a food delivery person by profession, encountered a troublesome situation on Monday morning on Motilal Gupta Road. It is an arterial road that connects Tollygunge with Behala. Jaiswal said that he was in a rush to deliver a food order at Behala Chowrasta and on his way, he had to dodge several potholes that had developed on the entire stretch of the road. “Finally, I failed to dodge one and my bike overturned. I received injuries but was saved luckily,” said Jaiswal.

Residents of areas like Behala, Tollygunge, Bhowanipore, Central Avenue and Mahatma Gandhi Road, have put forth their grievances to the respective councillors of their ward. They have sought immediate action in repairing the roads. Furthermore, Kolkata traffic police had also acknowledged the public grievances. They have further communicated the same to the KMC and have urged them to take cognisance of the matter.