Apathy of civic authorities takes a heavy toll on Indian roads. It’s time to take action
Monsoon has set in, after a fiery summer season. Surely, this is a time to rejoice and be delightful. But problem arises when it rains, and, it rains so heavily that it pours problems. like the monsoons are a regular feature, alongwith comes water-clogged roads, traffic snarls, diseases, potholes and manholes and subsequent mishaps. Every year, the potholes kill. Two recent incidents across two different regions in the country paint a grim scenario. In Mumbai, a young woman biker lost her life after she lost control of her bike on a pothole-ridden road and was crushed by a passing truck. In Delhi, a businessman lost his life after he fell into an open manhole. There will be many such instances to enumerate on how people, even teenagers and toddlers, have lost lives while manoeuvring past a pothole. The situation repeats every year due to the apathy of civic authorities who have failed to take control of the situation. In fact, potholes have emerged as one of the leading factors resulting in deaths on Indian roads. As per recent data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, 10,876 people lost their lives due to potholes in 2015 — thanks to the civic officials who have been giving the citizens a ‘bumpy' ride so much that it has been claiming the latter’s lives.
Apathy and callousness of the civic authorities have made a mockery of the lives of citizens as they negotiate death threats. While some are lucky to get back from the wall of death, others do not. What is appalling is that despite mounting death toll due to giant craters and open drains, the civic authorities have refused to learn lessons. What is even more dreadful is the insensitivity of the authorities in refusing to take responsibility for the incidents. In the recent case of the Mumbai biker, no action was initiated against the contractors. The officials did not even register a complaint and claimed that she died due to her own negligence. In the case of the Delhi incident too, the officials maintained that the drains were covered with concrete slabs, but some spaces are always left open for cleaning. A day before the biker incident, a yoga instructor in Mumbai lost her life as a coconut tree fell on her. What explanation would the civic authorities cite this time to escape the blame — for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation had been well informed about the danger through repetitive complaints by the society members, but failed to act.
Much of the problem is because of the nexus between contractual workers, civil engineers and politicians, who work hand-in-glove to undermine the quality of construction/repair. Such unholy practices have but been a lucrative deal for them. What complicates the matter is their reluctance to acknowledge their failure or even learn from their mistakes. Sadly, even if they are held accountable, there are few laws that can punish the civic bodies responsible for road accidents which occur due to negligence. Apparently, if a person becomes a victim of badly-kept roads, the civic authorities must be held responsible for the incident. Provision must be made for the creation of a separate department to financially compensate the victims and their families.