Thane resident takes down a silent protest for the issue of Potholes.

By Abhay Shah, Realty Quarter

Anand Nagar residents, fed up with the pothole outbreak on Ghodbunder Road in Thane, gathered for a silent protest on Sunday, requesting a solution to the problem that has created their lives hell over the past few months. Civic officials, meanwhile, retained that work is underway to fill potholes on roads aggravated by rain and waterlogging. Speaking of Sunday’s protest, Kasber Augustine, president of the Thane Citizens’ Foundation said, “Our protest was about the potholes throughout Thane and how Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) did not do the necessary repairs to complete them. The Ghodbunder Service Road and the inner road have large potholes.”

Citizens face many issues, many falling into potholes and injuring themselves. We request that all potholes be fixed before the Ganpati festival begins. The municipal commissioner from Thane should act quickly and resolve this issue faced by Thane residents.

Who is responsible for the accidents?

Dhananjay Redkar, another resident of Ghodbunder Road, said, “Transit on Ghodbunder Road and neighbouring regions has become hazardous for citizens owing to the precarious situation of the street. All roads are full of potholes and this is the consequence of bad planning and poor execution. Citizens have gathered today to draw the attention of the authorities to the hardships they face every day and to create a simple request: repair the roads fast and in a durable manner.

A member of the Ghodbunder Residents Forum and Thane Citizens ‘ Foundation said the situation came about after seeing women, schoolchildren, office-going individuals and senior citizens placed themselves through the arduous mission of dodging potholes on the road, which could look like a stunt on the show Khatron Ke Khiladi, just to go about their routine work.

“Women were particularly worried because they had to use the roads multiple times to drop their kids to schools, tuition classes and for other day-to-day activities. Even walking on these roads is no longer secure and many accidents have occurred recently. A five-year-old kid lost his life after falling off a bike owing to the poor road conditions. Who is responsible for this death? Are not the Thane Municipal Corporation and its contractors accountable?” asked a resident.

The gathered people demanded a permanent solution to the roads supposedly dug up by one department and fixed shoddily by another only to begin to resemble a battlefield. In January, two distinct departments dug up at different times at the regions around Vijay Garden and the Waghbil service road. They were repaired shortly before the rains came in June after several protests. That was the poor working quality and lack of planning that the repaired roads didn’t even last a week. To this end, people requested all concerned officials to pay adequate attention to the issue and to come up with a joint attempt to produce a long-lasting life-saving solution.

The Thane Matdata Jagran Abhiyan also conducted a silent protest at the spot on Ghodbunder Road on Sunday, where a five-year-old kid was killed because of an uneven road. The NGO’s residents and volunteers called for a permanent alternative to improve infrastructure facilities. If action is not enacted instantly, they will complain against the associated authority.

“While only half of the job has been accomplished by the contractor, MSRDC authorities have also not cross-checked, leading to inconvenience for commuters and citizens. We request a proper investigation and a complaint against the contractor and the officer concerned,” said Sanjiv Sane, president, Thane Matdata Jagran Abhiyan. “We hope that the town of lakes will not be called a town of potholes. Our patience is getting thin; there is no point in getting Eknath Shinde as the guardian minister for the Public Works Department (PWD) to look into MSRDC’s work. No attempts have been made to enhance our roads,” said Chetna Dixit, secretary, Thane Matdata Jagran Abhiyan.