Bengaluru: Chief Secretary orders PWD to inspect pothole repairs amid substandard work complaints

Bengaluru: Chief Secretary Shalini Rajneesh on Wednesday reportedly asked the Public Works Department (PWD) to inspect the ongoing pothole-filling work amid complaints that contractors are using substandard materials and processes.

She also proposed changes to the e-procurement portal to track the implementation of tendered projects until they are billed.

The decisions were taken at a multi-departmental meeting in the Vidhana Soudha, attended by senior IAS and IPS officers, Biocon CMD Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, and urban expert RK Mishra.

It was decided that corporation superintendent engineers will monitor the quality of roadworks, including material procurement, while PWD engineers will share independent feedback.

Speaking to reporters, Mishra said the government has drawn up a 90-day action plan to finish pending works worth Rs 694 crore, including road asphalting, development of 12 high-density corridors, and white-topping.

“We shared concerns about the bad quality of tar sourced from third-party suppliers without procuring it directly from standard entities such as the MRPL,” he said.

Mishra welcomed the creation of the five corporations, saying commissioners are now able to take quicker decisions. "One commissioner was not able to handle the entire city. Now, things are moving fast, but major thrust must be given for quality, timeliness, and accountability,” he said.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, who has been critical of garbage management and road conditions, said authorities had promised to complete some critical projects in a time-bound manner.

Congestion tax on ORR

At the meeting, urban expert RK Mishra suggested introducing congestion charges on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) to discourage single-occupant cars. Later, he said it was not enough to add new roads, but the government must also focus on demand management.

"Bengaluru is adding one lakh vehicles every month. About 82% of them are two-wheelers. In places such as London and Singapore, congestion charges are already in place. We should emulate this on the Outer Ring Road so that the tech parks promote carpooling among employees,” he said.

A senior official said the proposal was discussed, but is only at the idea stage. "It is a proposal that the government will consider seriously at the moment,” he said.