The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has been harshly criticised by the Sajag Nagrik Manch for its persistent failure to install subterranean utility duct networks throughout the city. The civic group demanded prompt action from high officials and blocked pipeline construction in Agroli, across from IIT, on the grounds of egregious administrative indifference.
The group’s main complaint is that there aren’t any planned underground utility ducts along highways, which leads to frequent, haphazard road excavation for the installation of water, electricity, telephone, and internet pipelines. In addition to causing public annoyance, these frequent excavations have harmed both recently constructed roadways and pre-existing infrastructure.
Only 100 to 120 km of Navi Mumbai’s roughly 700 km road network have subterranean utility duct facilities, according to RTI data that the Manch quoted. According to activists, this has led to a chaotic scenario beneath the city’s highways, with several utility companies installing pipes and cables in an uncontrolled way. The end effect is a complex underground network that frequently disrupts vital services like electricity and the internet while new infrastructure is being built.
The smart monitoring project in the city has also been affected by the problem. Even after hiring a reputable company like Tata, the NMMC has had trouble getting all 1,520 of its CCTV cameras up and running.
After the civic organisation started digging extensive roads to install treated water pipelines, the protest got out of hand. In order to prevent repeating roadworks, the Manch had already issued a memorandum asking the authorities to establish separate pipelines for future utility use concurrently. Members of the Manch, however, halted construction near Agroli and demanded an on-site examination by the City Engineer, the Deputy Commissioner of the Water Supply Department, and the Municipal Commissioner after the civic departments failed to respond or take any action.
The vice president of Sajag Nagrik Manch, Arun Kagale, told reporters, “This is a simple planning problem. Why can’t the city install a parallel duct for upcoming cables if it can install a treated water line? It would spare the city from future disturbances and is reasonably priced.
Pradeep Kashalkar, a Manch member, questioned the goals of the civic organisation. “A utility duct installation is a fantastic opportunity that is being overlooked. Is there something more going on here than just inefficiency?
Utility conduits would be required for any future road construction, the city administration had already promised the Manch in writing. But according to the group, nothing concrete has happened as a result. “We have demanded that police register a case against the Municipal Commissioner,” stated Sudhir Dani, an organiser of Sajag Nagrik Manch, who referred to the roadways as a type of national property. Poor planning that results in repeated roadworks is a waste of tax dollars and a betrayal of public confidence.
Source: The Free Press Journal
