Rains ravage Hyd’bad roads; lay bare potholes, craters

The delay in restoration of roads dug up for various works, including laying of drainage and water pipelines, is posing a risk to commuters as well as residents. During the rainy season, roads turn into accident-prone areas. Dug-up roads at various places are posing a threat to residents

According to social activists, rains have exposed the poorquality roads laid by GHMC as well as private agencies under the Comprehensive Road Maintenance Programme (CRMP). The roads in several areas and internal roads are severely damaged, causing inconvenience to commuters

Hyderabad: The city is once again witnessing rain, due to which roads are suffering immense damage. The recent heavy rainfall left many low-lying areas inundated and roads dotted with potholes posing risk to commuters. Driving has become a risky affair for commuters after rain continues to pound the city.

The delay in restoration of roads dug up for various works, including laying of drainage and water pipelines, is posing a risk to commuters as well as residents. During the rainy season, roads turn into accident-prone areas. Dug-up roads at various places are posing a threat to residents.

According to social activists, rains have exposed the poor-quality roads laid by GHMC as well as private agencies under the Comprehensive Road Maintenance Programme (CRMP). The roads in several areas and internal roads are severely damaged, causing inconvenience to the commuters.

“It’s quite surprising that newly-laid roads are unable to withstand rain. There should be a financial and social audit,” said Mohammed Ahmed, a social activist.

The damaged roads and potholes can be noticed at vital lanes, including the ones at Moosarambagh, Begumpet, Indira Nagar, Langer Houz, Malakpet, Saidabad, Chaderghat, Bandlaguda, Falaknuma, Karwan, Jiyaguda, Amberpet, Puranapul, Bahadurpura, Kishan Bagh, and many others.

Rain resulted in over 3,500 potholes which are in a bad condition giving a nightmare to commuters. The GHMC claimed that patchwork is being done after rain when grievances are received. Also, it is taking up repair work on a war-footing and has also repaired a few main stretches in the city, said a GHMC official.

To make roads smooth for motorists, it would take some time to fill potholes as dry weather should prevail to take up patch work. It’s not possible to fill potholes as bitumen would get peeled off during rain, added the official.

Pothole-filled roads are causing severe discomfort to commuters. Roads have become worse after getting washed away in the recent heavy rain. The roads and by-lanes in Nacharam, Kavadiguda, Aram Ghar, Mehdipatnam, Nampally, Asif Nagar, Moghalpura, Santosh Nagar and several other areas, where flyovers are under construction, and other work is on, they have gone from bad to worse.

After rain, the entire city roads in both the new and old city are damaged and filled with potholes. The new city areas, including Srinagar Colony, colonies in Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills, Ameerpet, Madhapur, Secunderabad, Shaikpet, Narayanguda, among others are damaged.

“Roads in the city took a beating due to heavy rainfall since past one week. They have turned into a commuting hazard. Rain caused asphalt to erode and blacktopping got washed away, creating scores of large potholes,” said Akhil Jain, a commuter at Madhapur.

Several netizens took to Twitter to express their grievances. To show the poor quality of roads, images and videos of those damaged and filled with potholes are being posted. “Driving on several roads in the city has turned into a nightmare for citizens,” a commuter tweeted.