PMO seeks report on asphalted road in Bengaluru that peels off after PM's visit

The asphalted roads could, however, stand only till the PM's visit and are wearing out at many locations and are even caving in at some places, putting the lives of commuters in danger. People of the surrounding areas of this stretch of roads, who were happy with the repair of the road, are now disappointed again.

Bengaluru: The Prime Minister's Office has sought a report even as Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has ordered an inquiry into the alleged substandard macadamization of a road in Bengaluru "facelifted" at a cost of Rs 23 crore for the PM's recent visit to the state. The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), drew a flak from the public for spending Rs 23 crore for the facelift of 14 km roads in Bengaluru ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit.

The asphalted roads could, however, stand only till the PM's visit and are wearing out at many locations and are even caving in at some places, putting lives of the commuters in danger. People of the surrounding areas of this stretch of roads, who were happy with the repair of the road, are now disappointed again. The work was done on war footing amid rains for the PM's recent visit. However, the public started complaining about potholes coming up on the road.

The Jnanabharathi Main Road, part of Rs 23 crore road works, was repaired at a cost of Rs 6 crore and PM Modi traveled on this stretch on Monday. After a spell of overnight rain, a stretch of the road caved in. BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath stated that at some points the asphalted road was damaged only due to heavy rainfall and it was "not fair to say that the entire stretch of repaired road was damaged".

Ravindra P.N., the Special Commissioner (Projects) said they have so far fixed 14,500 potholes in the city and another 1,500 potholes will be fixed soon "but rains are delaying the work". The pathetic condition of the roads in the city has been a major concern for the commuters in Bengaluru. The issue has been raised by many prominent personalities, including Biocon Chief Kiran Majumdar-Shaw.

The Karnataka High Court also warned the authorities on multiple occasions to fix the Bengaluru roads. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) has sought a detailed report about a newly asphalted stretch of road caving in after his visit to Bengaluru. Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai has instructed the BBMP commissioner to conduct an inquiry into the caving in of a road that was repaired for prime minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bengaluru on Monday.