MUMBAI: The BMC on Saturday claimed it has covered 90% of the potholes in the city. However, a look at the roads revealed a short-cut adopted by the contractors at many places: use of the banned paver blocks.Consequently, citizens and politicians accused the BMC of providing misleading information. They questioned the BMC how it could use paver blocks when the civic body had taken a policy decision to not use it for road work.On Thursday, the civic administration had given an assurance to the BMC general body meeting- i.e., the House of 227 corporators-that it would fill the all potholes by Sunday.Additional municipal commissioner Vijay Singhal said, "We have filled over 90% of potholes and the remaining work will be completed by Sunday. We are using cold mix for the potholes. In a few places paver blocks have been used as we are in the process of appointing new contractors for those areas. Paver blocks are a temporary solution."Andheri-based activist Godfrey Pimenta said the BMC is trying to fool citizens. "Their claim that most of the potholes are filled is false, as one can notice potholes across in the city. Outside my office in Marol, there is a big crater for the past few days and it only becoming bigger, but the BMC hasn't bothered to fill it. There is no ground survey to understand the reality. They are just interested in make statistics to show that everything is good." Bandra corporator Asif Zakaria (Congress) said, "They are putting any kind of material to fill potholes, and it gives in after rain. They are also using paver blocks to fill potholes. They claimed that they have cold-mix which is more effective to fill potholes even during rain. Then why are they not using it? Is it because they fear that their claim will get exposed?."Civic officials said the condition of the roads are better than in the past, and problems are occurring mainly in Bandra and Andheri (East) because the contractor appointed in these areas for road resurfacing work had done a shoddy work. Recently the BMC blacklisted the contractor and cancelled his contract for filling pothole during monsoon, an official said adding that the BMC is in the process to appointing a new contractor. "Till then, we are trying to fill the potholes with paver blocks," an official said.Meanwhile, the Congress continued its campaign to count potholes in various parts of the city to publish the problem.City Congress started a campaign to visit various areas to count potholes and inform civic administration about it. City Congress president Sanjay Nirupam said, "The administration providing false figure, there are thousands of potholes on the road and they failed to attend most of them. Its complete failure of civic administration and ruling party, they are waiting to Kalyan like disaster (death due to pothole) to be happen in the city due to pothole."

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