Road construction minister Nand Kishore Yadav on Wednesday issued orders to repair all potholes in the city before Dussehra.
He said potholes on roads under the output and performance based road assets maintenance contract (OPRMC) must be repaired in view of the large numbers of devotees who come to the city during the festive season.
The roads under the road construction department are being maintained under the OPRMC in which contractors are assigned the responsibility of maintaining a stretch for five years.
A total of 9,064 km of roads come under the OPRMC, for which the state government has approved Rs 2579.1738 crore for five years.
The minister said that strict action would be taken against contractors who fail to repair the potholes before the festive season.
“I have fixed the deadline of October 5 to repair all
the roads before Durga
Puja because a large number of people come to Patna to see the pandals and it is our duty to repair all those places were potholes have been created in the rainy season,” Nand Kishore said.
The monsoons have battered many city roads, such as the stretch in front of Rabindra Bhavan, the R-Block road, the Meethapur road, the Kankarbagh road, the road under Chiraiyatand bridge, the Gosai Tola-Patliputra road, parts of Bailey Road, station road, Rajapur Pul road which connects with Gandhi Maidan, the Asiana-Digha road, east and west Lohanipur road, and Punai Chak Road.
There are also many roads in the interiors of the city in bad shape.
The damaged stretches are a nightmare for commuters and often become the reason for accidents when speeding vehicles cannot not stop on time when they reach a potholed road.
Nand Kishore stressed that the Dussehra deadline for road repairs was non-negotiable.
“Even if a single pothole will be found, strict action would be taken against the engineers and the contractors responsible for monitoring and maintaining that road,” he said.
During Durga Puja, Patna’s roads are filled with pedestrians out to see the pandals and idols. Many people come from neighbouring districts as well, adding to the rush.
Residents took the minister’s promise with a dash of salt.
“The government should be prompt in fixing potholes all the time, not just during the festive season,” said Kankarbagh resident Aniket Kumar.
“The government may claim that they repair round the year but it is only visible during the festive season.”
Ballad of road policy
The OPRMC policy was approved by the cabinet on February 12, 2013 and that time also Nand Kishore was part of Nitish Kumar’s cabinet.
On February 21, 2013, the policy was notified after which study of different modules being implemented by other states and countries were done.
On September 26, 2013, the state government gave the administrative approval to this policy.
While state highways and major district roads run for 15,150 km, only 9,064km is maintained under the OPRMC.