Pune Municipal Corporation To Repair 10,000 Drainage Chambers To Improve Road Safety In Pune
· Free Press Journal
Pune: To improve road safety and ensure smoother traffic movement across the city, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has announced a large-scale initiative to repair nearly 10,000 drainage manhole chambers and bring them to road level. According to Municipal Commissioner Naval Kishore Ram, Pune has around 40,000 manholes installed on city roads, of which almost 25 per cent are currently in poor condition. Many of these chambers are either raised above or sunk below the surface of the road, creating dangerous driving conditions that often lead to traffic disruptions and accidents.
The issue becomes particularly severe during the monsoon season, when waterlogging makes these uneven manhole covers difficult to spot, increasing the risk of skidding, especially for two-wheeler riders. Apart from accidents, motorists have also reported recurring back and neck pain due to the constant jolts caused by such uneven surfaces. Recognising the growing safety concerns, PMC has already taken steps in this direction, repairing nearly 2,000 manholes while upgrading 75 kilometres of roads for the Pune Grand Tour.
The move also gains significance in light of directions from the Bombay High Court, which has ordered criminal action against engineers and contractors in cases where road-related defects, such as potholes, lead to fatal accidents. In response, PMC has sanctioned a budget of ₹12 crore for the repair drive and plans to appoint five experienced agencies to carry out the work across the city on a priority basis.
Officials stated that improving road conditions remains a key focus area this year under the newly formed City Transformation Cell. The repair work will be undertaken across multiple zones, including Nagar Road–Vadgaonsheri, Shivajinagar, Aundh-Baner-Balewadi, Sinhagad Road, Warje-Karvenagar, Kondhwa, Hadapsar, Wanawadi, Bibwewadi and Kasba Vishrambaugwada, among others, as part of the city-wide effort to make Pune’s roads safer for daily commuters.
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