Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has given instructions to run a special campaign to make the roads of the state pothole-free before Diwali in the coming November.

Holding a meeting with various departments on Monday, the chief minister said that the monsoon this year was unusual.

“There is a possibility of continuous rain in many districts in the coming days. Keeping this in mind, a state-wide road pothole-free campaign should be run before Diwali in November,” Yogi Adityanath said and added: “Where it is raining, traffic should be streamlined by placing boulders and running rollers.”

He said there were about four lakh kilometres of roads of departments like the Public Works Department, National Highways Authority of India, Mandi Parishad, Irrigation, Rural Development, Panchayati Raj, Sugar Industry and Sugarcane Development, Housing, Infrastructure and Industrial Development department in the state.

“It is the responsibility of all of us to make commuting on every road a pleasant experience. If the previously laid roads deteriorate due to big projects like the metro or expressway, the department concerned would be held responsible,” the chief minister said.

After being briefed about the departmental action plan for pothole-free roads campaign, the chief minister directed the departments concerned to focus on better planning, ruling out any dearth of funds in this regard.

He instructed all departments to ensure that the road building agency or contractor also takes the responsibility of maintaining the road for the next five years after its construction. The terms and conditions in this regard should be clearly mentioned, he added.

Terming engineers as the backbone of construction work, the chief minister said that there should be no shortage of engineers anywhere and if necessary, they should be deployed through outsourcing also.

Instructing ministers and officers of the departments concerned to review construction projects by making random visits to the field and fixing accountability, the chief minister stressed on mechanised repair of roads rather than manual.

He also said that the engineers should be posted only on the basis of merit.

The chief minister said that every department should ensure that people with criminal records do not get a place in any public interest project. Their close relatives and gang operatives should also be kept away from contracts, he added.

The chief minister said that geo-tagging should be done for the pothole-free and re-construction campaign. “It should be linked to the PM Gatishakti portal, and its own portal should also be developed on similar lines so that the quality of work can be continuously monitored,” he said.

While giving instructions to the Urban Development and Rural Development departments, the chief minister said that waterlogged streets must be cleared immediately. He said the officers of the departments should remain present on the streets.

While discussing the problem of stray dogs in cities, the chief minister gave instructions for speedy implementation of the proposed animal birth control units and making other necessary arrangements.