With civic polls in mind, Shiv Sena gets cracking on craters

BMC workers fix a potholed road in Juhu last month

In the run up to civic elections, which are hardly a few months away, the Shiv Sena has started slamming the administration over potholes on the city's roads. As part of the party's efforts to woo citizens, Mayor Kishori Pednekar on Wednesday asked Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal to take action against negligent contractors, in addition to the series of instructions that he had given on Tuesday.

With the monsoon showing no signs of withdrawal, Chahal had instructed road and ward officials to devote the next three to four weeks to making roads pothole-free. Road engineers were asked to devote all their time to potholes and told that they would be exempt from other responsibilities. Officials were expected to fill potholes within 24 hours of them being noticed.

Mayor Kishori Pednekar

With the Congress and BJP slamming the Sena for pothole-ridden roads, the ruling party has claimed to have instructed officers to make citizens' lives better. Pednekar said that efforts to fill potholes will also continue in the future.

The Opposition further targeted Pednekar for her recent appearance on a news channel where she was seen demanding answers from the administration during a road inspection. Twitterati had called the incident a stunt. Pednekar said, "No stunts were done in the inspection of roads in L ward. Officers concerned were showing me old photos of work done and I merely pointed out to them that there is a difference between these photos and the current situation. I am focusing on working for the betterment of citizens."

The mayor has also written, asking him to Chahal to return to physical general body and committee meetings starting next month.