The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has imposed a blanket ban on digging newly paved roads across Mumbai, directing civic officials to ensure all road concretisation projects are completed by May 31. This move, announced on Wednesday, aims to curb the frequent excavation of roads, a major source of inconvenience for citizens.
According to an official release, civic commissioner and state-appointed administrator Bhushan Gagrani has issued stringent directives regarding roadworks. Once a road is constructed, no further digging or trenching will be permitted under any circumstances. Additionally, no new roads will be dug for concretisation, reinforcing BMC’s commitment to streamlining Mumbai’s road infrastructure.
The civic body has already issued work orders for cement concretisation of 324 km (covering 698 roads) in the island city and 377 km (1,420 roads) in Mumbai’s eastern and western suburbs. BMC aims to complete 75% of these projects in the first phase, setting an ambitious deadline to avoid further disruption.
“To minimize inconvenience to citizens, excavation of new roads has been prohibited after February 22. All ongoing roadworks and related tasks must be completed by May 31,” the BMC stated in its release.
Sources within the civic body reveal that the decision comes in response to growing complaints from citizens and activists about newly built roads being frequently dug up, leading to perpetual congestion and poor road conditions. While the ban is being hailed as a decisive step towards better urban planning, some critics question whether it will effectively address Mumbai’s infrastructure problems or merely create new bureaucratic roadblocks.
