<p>Bengaluru: Bad roads continue to plague several parts of the city as repair and asphalting works have come to a halt due to a shortage of bitumen, raising concerns over monsoon preparedness.</p>.<p>Major stretches such as Hennur Road, Bannerghatta Road, Mysore Road, Hosakerehalli Main Road, and Panathur Road remain in poor condition, with commuters forced to navigate uneven surfaces, loose gravel, and deep potholes.</p>.<p>In many locations, roads dug up for laying pipelines or cables have been left incomplete.</p>.<p>Officials and contractors say the disruption in bitumen supply — a key material used in asphalting — has stalled projects across all five corporations. The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) requires about 60,000 tonnes of bitumen to complete all pending roadworks.</p>.<p>Contractors have paused asphalting work barring places like MG Road, with only civil works such as fixing drains and footpaths continuing in a few areas.</p>.<p>The delay has triggered frustration among residents.</p>.<p>"Hennur Road is completely broken. There is dust all over. This is also the road that a large number of commuters use to reach the Kempegowda International Airport. If the condition is already bad now, imagine what happens when it starts raining," said Merwin Francis, a resident of Kothanur, adding that the condition of Geddalahalli Road and Babusapalya are equally bad.</p>.<p>Civic authorities had earlier promised that key arterial and sub-arterial roads would be repaired before the rains. With works now stalled in several areas, those assurances appear increasingly uncertain.</p>.<p>There is also concern that the bitumen shortage could lead to fake billing, given that the state government has already approved roadworks worth Rs 2,241 crore, with the project at various stages of implementation.</p>.<p>Meanwhile, the Greater Bengaluru City Corporations Contractors' Association wrote to the commissioners of all five corporations, seeking an increase in bitumen prices from Rs 45,000 per tonne to Rs 72,000 per tonne.</p>.<p>"There is a possibility that the prices could go up further in the coming days," said BM Nandakumar, president of the association, requesting the corporations to revise prices for projects that have already received work orders.</p>
<p>Bengaluru: Bad roads continue to plague several parts of the city as repair and asphalting works have come to a halt due to a shortage of bitumen, raising concerns over monsoon preparedness.</p>.<p>Major stretches such as Hennur Road, Bannerghatta Road, Mysore Road, Hosakerehalli Main Road, and Panathur Road remain in poor condition, with commuters forced to navigate uneven surfaces, loose gravel, and deep potholes.</p>.<p>In many locations, roads dug up for laying pipelines or cables have been left incomplete.</p>.<p>Officials and contractors say the disruption in bitumen supply — a key material used in asphalting — has stalled projects across all five corporations. The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) requires about 60,000 tonnes of bitumen to complete all pending roadworks.</p>.<p>Contractors have paused asphalting work barring places like MG Road, with only civil works such as fixing drains and footpaths continuing in a few areas.</p>.<p>The delay has triggered frustration among residents.</p>.<p>"Hennur Road is completely broken. There is dust all over. This is also the road that a large number of commuters use to reach the Kempegowda International Airport. If the condition is already bad now, imagine what happens when it starts raining," said Merwin Francis, a resident of Kothanur, adding that the condition of Geddalahalli Road and Babusapalya are equally bad.</p>.<p>Civic authorities had earlier promised that key arterial and sub-arterial roads would be repaired before the rains. With works now stalled in several areas, those assurances appear increasingly uncertain.</p>.<p>There is also concern that the bitumen shortage could lead to fake billing, given that the state government has already approved roadworks worth Rs 2,241 crore, with the project at various stages of implementation.</p>.<p>Meanwhile, the Greater Bengaluru City Corporations Contractors' Association wrote to the commissioners of all five corporations, seeking an increase in bitumen prices from Rs 45,000 per tonne to Rs 72,000 per tonne.</p>.<p>"There is a possibility that the prices could go up further in the coming days," said BM Nandakumar, president of the association, requesting the corporations to revise prices for projects that have already received work orders.</p>