BBMP’s court story is full of potholes

The High Court has now directed BBMP to publicise its website. But a bigger problem is the corruption dogging the corporation

The BBMP has given an undertaking to the Karnataka High Court that the “remaining” 221 potholes on major roads in Bengaluru will be filled within 10 days. Such undertakings have been given by the civic body several times over the last few years and so it does not come as a surprise. But what is baffling is the ridiculously low number of potholes the BBMP seems to have counted and cited. This clearly amounts to misleading the court since virtually no road, save for a few in the central business district, is free from potholes. In some areas, roads are virtually non-existent, and some roads are just networks of potholes. What seems to have emboldened BBMP officers to take the judiciary for granted, and to do so repeatedly, is that the court has been rather generous and taken a soft view of their wilful disobedience of its orders. The situation is unlikely to change unless a few officers are hauled up for contempt and sent to jail. The court should not allow the officers to misuse the long rope it has given them in good faith and to prod them to action.

The civic body told the court that following every complaint received from the public on its dedicated website for reporting potholes, an action taken report is uploaded, along with photographs. This is not quite true. The High Court has now directed BBMP to publicise this website. But a bigger problem is the corruption dogging the corporation. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had informed the legislature last year that Rs 25,000 crore was spent on road repairs alone in the past five years. He had promised an inquiry into the utilisation of funds. While nothing has been heard on the inquiry so far, a good part of the money could have gone down the potholes. Contractors have repeatedly alleged that they have to pay a 40% kickback on civil works contracts. One can thus easily imagine the quality of works executed and why potholes appear within days of roads being re-laid.

Experience has shown that BBMP officers do not take seriously the sworn affidavits that they submit. The court should consider appointing a court commissioner to conduct an audit of the potholes in the city based on the feedback received from citizens on the BBMP’s dedicated website or app and to physically verify the civic body’s claim of having filled them. Bengaluru’s notorious potholes and crumbling infrastructure have become the subject of ridicule across the country and the world. With politicians and bureaucrats failing the city’s residents miserably, the judiciary is the last ray of hope.