Times of India 22.07.2009
PCMC to track pothole repairs through software
PUNE: Citizens in Pimpri-Chinchwad will soon be able to ensure that potholes in the area are repaired promptly. The municipal corporation has taken the initiative to develop a software by which it will monitor complaints about potholes and take immediate action to repair them.
Speaking to TOI on Monday, municipal commissioner Ashish Sharma said that the software is being developed by the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) for the PCMC. It will soon be uploaded on the official website of PCMC so that citizens can access it, Sharma added.
Giving details of the software, Sharma said, "Initially a team of five or six civic employees will be deployed to locate the potholes on the various roads. The information they gather will be put on the website. It will also have updated information about the action taken in repairing the potholes."
Sharma added that later when the corporation gains the confidence that it can handle the pothole repair work quickly, the public will be included in tracking the potholes. "It should not happen that we get many complaints and they pile up. We hope that in a month or two we will be able to allow the citizens to participate and lodge complaints regarding the potholes that they have seen on roads in the municipal limits. We would like to develop our system wherein the potholes can be repaired within two days in normal weather conditions." he said.
An official at the engineering department said, "A demonstration of the software was held for civic officials recently. We are checking the shortcomings in the software and they will be rectified soon. Junior engineers in the civic engineering department will be trained to handle the software and use it."
Incidentally, several potholes have developed on the internal roads of Pimpri-Chinchwad due to last week's heavy rains.
Speaking to TOI on Monday, municipal commissioner Ashish Sharma said that the software is being developed by the Software Technology Park of India (STPI) for the PCMC. It will soon be uploaded on the official website of PCMC so that citizens can access it, Sharma added.
Giving details of the software, Sharma said, "Initially a team of five or six civic employees will be deployed to locate the potholes on the various roads. The information they gather will be put on the website. It will also have updated information about the action taken in repairing the potholes."
Sharma added that later when the corporation gains the confidence that it can handle the pothole repair work quickly, the public will be included in tracking the potholes. "It should not happen that we get many complaints and they pile up. We hope that in a month or two we will be able to allow the citizens to participate and lodge complaints regarding the potholes that they have seen on roads in the municipal limits. We would like to develop our system wherein the potholes can be repaired within two days in normal weather conditions." he said.
An official at the engineering department said, "A demonstration of the software was held for civic officials recently. We are checking the shortcomings in the software and they will be rectified soon. Junior engineers in the civic engineering department will be trained to handle the software and use it."
Incidentally, several potholes have developed on the internal roads of Pimpri-Chinchwad due to last week's heavy rains.