Rain fury: Cash-strapped Chandigarh MC shuts eyes to damage

The cash-strapped Municipal Corporation has failed to maintain the city roads, the condition of which has become worse in monsoon. The one-week rain spell has wreaked havoc on the roads in several areas, turning them into death traps.

The road near the Chandigarh Golf Club is riddled with potholes. The parking area of the Sukhna Lake has been badly damaged.

The Sector 29-30 stretch is in a really bad condition. All roads in Dadumajra have been completely damaged. Most roads in the Manimajra have developed potholes, which pose a risk to scooterists in the rainy season.

Local residents have started drives to fill the potholes themselves in many areas.

Gurpreet Singh, Congress councillor, said he had never seen such a bad condition of the roads in the city. Rakesh Kumar, a resident of Sector 45, said all internal roads had been damaged in the sector.

President of the city Congress HS Lucky said the BJP-led MC has failed on every front. It has failed to get sufficient funds for the recarpeting of the roads.

Vijay Pal Singh, president of city AAP, said the MC had failed to ensure the maintenance pf basic infrastructure. The condition of the roads is really bad in villages and colonies.

Baljinder Singh Bittu, president of the Federation of Sector Welfare Association of Chandigarh (FOSWAC), said Chandigarh has become a pothole city. The roads at the Dhanas rehabilitation colony are in poor shape. Ranjna Kumari, a resident of Manimajra, said the condition of potholed roads has become even worse in monsoon. No recarpeting has been carried out in the ward for years.

Chandigarh Mayor Harpreet Kaur Babla said she was once again considering tabling the agenda in General House to hand over V -3 roads to the Administration for maintenance. The agenda was tabled at the House meeting on March 25, which was opposed by councillors cutting across party lines and consequently rejected.

Many residents of the city have blamed the adamant attitude of the councillors, who opposed the agenda, for the deteriorating condition of the city roads in monsoon.

Owing to the shortage of funds, the internal roads in sectors have not been properly maintained for years. The MC is responsible for maintaining 1860 Km of roads, which is approximately 60% of the total road length in Chandigarh.