BENGALURU: Road contractors in the city are facing the threat of losing their security deposits with the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike ( BBMP ) for their alleged failure to maintain roads and ensure they are free of potholes.Last week, the Karnataka high court issued an ultimatum to BBMP, asking it to fill up all potholes in the city by September 24, following which the contractors’ role in maintaining roads has come under scrutiny. The contractors were found to be responsible for the maintenance of 1,650km of the city’s 14,000km roads, as these are within the defect liability period (DLP), the period when they are liable to maintain roads which they have executed.The contractors run the risk of forfeiting their security deposits if they don’t maintain the roads in a timely manner. The 14,000km of road network in the city includes arterial, sub-arterial and ward roads.The Karnataka high court has forced BBMP engineers body and contractors to work round the clock to fill up the thousands of potholes dotting the city.“Generally, we retain 5% of the contract value in the form of a security deposit, which is returned to the contractor on completion of the DLP. If they don’t maintain the roads, we forfeit the security deposit. For defaulters who fail to reply to notices, our engineers recommend action be taken against them. In most cases, contractors know that they’d lose their contract if they fail to maintain the roads and reply to notices. A few months ago, our engineers issued notices to about six contractors who were not carrying out timely maintenance,” said S Somashekhar, chief engineer, road infrastructure.An engineer working in BBMP south zone said in most cases, contractors were cooperating with the civic body. However, they were refusing to intervene in cases where the road had been cut by other utilities like Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) or private agencies.“Most damages to roads are caused due to BWSSB works (like laying pipes) for which roads are cut, in many cases without even seeking BBMP’s permission. When this happens, the road contractor is reluctant to fix the damage as it has been caused by an outside party. However, about 50% of them do agree to do the work as it is only a temporary job,” he said.Said KT Manjunath, president of BBMP Contractors Association: “Following the high court order, these contractors are trying to fill potholes as soon as possible. While most of the contracts have been given to the Karnataka Rural Infrastructure Development Limited (KRIDL), there are a few small-time contractors who are also maintaining the roads.”Citizens question Palike’s road history projectCitizens say the BBMP’s road history project, which entailed publishing of details of road works on the Palike’s website, was seen as a move towards greater transparency. The idea is to allow the public to access details on the amount of money sanctioned for development work for each road, the nature of the work, name of the contractor and date of completion, among other things. But the project is lacking in real information, they allege.However, MR Venkatesh, engineer-in-chief, insists the project is running fine. “It has been in place for five years, and all information is available on our website. As and when works are over, details are updated in the road history. Apart from road works, information on drainage and pavements is also being updated,” he said.BETTER VERSION: Days after TOI highlighted the shoddy work done by BBMP in filling potholes in Bhadrappa Layout near Sahakar Nagar, north Bengaluru, civic workers fixed the stretch properly on SundayNO NUMBERS FROM BBMPThe BBMP on Sunday — a day before the deadline set by the high court to make Bengaluru pothole free expired — didn't release any official data on the status of potholes in the city. Sources in the civic body said all eight zonal heads claimed there were no potholes left in their respective jurisdictions and only about 60 potholes on major roads needed to be fixed. "We didn't release any data as it is tough to believe there are no potholes left in the city. Since it also rained in some parts of the city, we will wait till Monday morning and an updated affidavit will be filed before the court," sources added.

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