Pune civic body plans road digging works after monsoon, commuters will continue to suffer

Pune: There seems to be no end in sight for poor roads across the city as the civic body has planned large-scale digging after the monsoon season.
Around 350km of roads under Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) limits are expected to be dug up. Nearly Rs 600 crore from taxpayers' money would be spent to dig up roads and later restore them.
The roads would be dug up to lay cables for works such as a CCTV camera network for the police department and a data-sharing network for govt authorities.
Residents have pointed out that commuters are suffering due to the poor planning of authorities. The undue interests of a handful of civic officials, contractors, and politicians are creating nuisance for the whole city, they added.
"Technology has advanced a lot, but the administration is still using traditional methods of road digging because vested financial interests are involved in this exercise. It is a wastage of public funds and promotes corruption," said Vijay Kumbhar of Surajya Sangharsha Samiti, a citizens' group.
Jayshree Kanade, a resident of Sadashiv Peth, said senior citizens suffered the most due to pothole-filled roads and never-ending road digging. "Commuting and walking, especially in the Peth areas, is a major concern due to small roads. The dug-up roads make it even more difficult for senior citizens. Every monsoon season is troublesome due to poor roads," she said.
Ashwini Pathak, a resident of Satara Road, said the administration must come up with a long-term plan to build civic infrastructure.
"The technologies of CCTV cameras are fast changing. The administration must build the network for it already. It will help bring down repeated road digging," she said.
All govt and semi-govt agencies pay only 50% restoration charges. PMC charges Rs 12,000 from private firms, while Rs 6,000 is charged from government agencies. The civic body spends Rs 7,000 to Rs 8,000 per running metre to repair dug-up roads.
According to PMC data, it repairs around 10,000 potholes annually caused by rains. Nearly 30,000 metric tonnes of the tar-macadam mixture and around 6,000 metric tonnes of cement mixture is used to repair roads, an official said.
The usual deadline to complete road digging and restoration is May 31. Between June 1 and Sept 30, only digging for emergency works is permitted.
"The permissions are granted for works like CCTV networks as they pertain to law and order. The network for data sharing between various government agencies is going to help improve coordination between various agencies," said Aniruddha Pawaskar, head of PMC's road department.
He said that the permissions are given in such a manner that the actual road digging is reduced. Different agencies digging roads at the same locations have been asked to plan their works at the same time, so that it would avoid repeated digging. PMC has reduced nearly 200km of road digging by such planning, he added.
Another PMC official pointed out that the civic body monitors permissions at the ground level. Last year, PMC fined contractors for digging roads without proper permissions in Nagar Road, Warje, and Sinhagad Road. A fine of around Rs 50 lakh was charged from 10 different contractors.