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Road Development

GHMC road repair work on track

Tuesday, 06 August 2013 05:03 administrator
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The Hindu               06.08.2013 

GHMC road repair work on track

Special Correspondent

The GHMC, which has taken up temporary restoration of city roads that were battered due to recent rains, has attended to nearly 60 per cent of the identified stretches.

Speaking after the weekly ‘Prajavani’ programme here on Monday, Commissioner M.T. Krishna Babu said targets were already set for the remaining works and they were being taken up. Leakages of water and sewerage and rain water stagnation were the main culprits damaging the roads and associated departments were asked to address these issues, he said. The Hyderabad Metro Water Supply & Sewerage Board (HMWSSB) has been asked for a comprehensive plan and the same was awaited. The R&B Department and also the National Highways have stepped up their efforts in road restoration works, he said.

On the JNNURM housing scheme, the Commissioner said the GHMC has constructed 56,000 houses under the scheme but there were some issues related to identifying beneficiaries not willing to pay the beneficiary contribution. A meeting with Collectors of Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts would be held to address the issue.

In ‘Prajavani’, a group of beneficiaries of Unni Kota housing colony had met Mr. Krishna Babu and represented their problems. The Commissioner later said the beneficiaries here had come forward to pay their contribution but the contractors were reluctant to complete the construction citing rise in rates. The remaining work in the colony was in finishing stage and initiatives would be taken to complete it at the earliest, he added.

Leakages of water, sewerage and rain water stagnation the main culprits damaging roads M.T. Krishna Babu, GHMC Commissioner.

 

‘Quick fix’ solutions for potholes in Kochi

Monday, 05 August 2013 10:15 administrator
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Deccan Chronicle         05.08.2013

‘Quick fix’ solutions for potholes in Kochi

Kochi: Kochi Corporation is likely to opt for a ‘quick fix’ solution to fill the num­erous potholes formed on major roads post monsoon rains. It plans to set up ‘mobile units’ to fill  potholes on a temporary basis using cold-mix bitumen on vital stretches in the city.

Earlier on Saturday, an NGO ‘Better Kochi Resp­o­n­se Group’, conducted a live demonstration of filling  potholes using the technology near the regional passport office at Panampilly Nagar in the presence of top officials of the Corporation and the GCDA.

“The technology is not new and is even included in the PWD manual. What is prohibitive is  the cost factor. But with  no other technology to repair roads during rains, we’re considering  using it to fill potholes on city roads  as a temporary relief. We’ve consulted PWD officials who have not raised any objections,” sources said.

But the main concern of the corporation is regar­ding its durability on roads with  heavy vehicular traffic. “One of the major advantages is that vehicles can use the road within 10 to 15 minutes of refilling. But it may not be suitable for one-layer roads and those  having heavy traffic like the National Highway. We plan to use it at select locations,” they said.

NGO president S. Go­pakumar  said  that Mayor Tony Chammany had shown keen interest in the technology which is ideal for use in the rainy season. “Ideally the roads should be repaired using the technology immediately after the potholes are formed as it prevents the potholes from getting bigger and hence lesser repair after  the monsoon is  over,” he said.

 

NGO demonstrates fast road repair using cold bitumen

Sunday, 04 August 2013 00:00 administrator
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The New Indian Express           04.08.2013 

NGO demonstrates fast road repair using cold bitumen

The city-based NGO,  ‘Better Kochi Response Group’ (BKRG), which has mooted the idea of using cold mix or cold bitumen for filling the potholes in the city, conducted a demonstration in this regard on Saturday.

BKRG, which is an NGO authorised by the state government to co-ordinate the PWD infrastructure activities in the city, carried out the  demonstration on a pothole in front of KMA building.

According to BKRG, filling potholes with cold mix or cold bitumen can be done even on rainy days and does not need much labour, equipment or heating.

“In this method, an average-sized pothole can be filled single-handedly and takes only 10 to 15 minutes.

“Since no heating or melting is involved, there is no air pollution and it is very safe for workers. It does not disturb traffic around the section where the work is being carried out and there is no sound pollution either”, according to a statement issued by BKRG here.

The demonstration was carried out by Muralidharan Kurup who represents Shell Company and the product used was Shelmac PR. Initially, the potholes were cleaned and stagnant water was removed.

The product, which comes in ready mix condition in packets, was spread on the pot hole and levelled and rammed by a single labourer. “The whole filling process took less than 20 minutes and the road, which was in a wet condition, was ready to use instantly”, the BKRG statement added.

Kochi mayor Tony Chammany, Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) chairman N  Venugopal, deputy mayor B Bhadra, GCDA town planner Gopalakrishnan, Kochi corporation town planning standing committee chairman K J Sohan and officials from PWD and other agencies were also present on the occasion.

“Later, the GCDA chairman’s car was driven over the repaired area twice and the patch work remained intact without any damage”, said the officebearers of BKRG.

 
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