'We didn't know!': BMC engineers shocked that their numbers are public

Instead of responding to calls by citizens about the potholes across Mumbai, BMC engineers want to know why they were not told that their numbers were being made public as per HC order

What does the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) do when the High Court orders it to make the numbers of those responsible for the city’s bad roads available to the public? It does just that in an advertisement published in most newspapers across the city. The only hitch being that it did not brief a single one of the civic engineers named in that advertisement about it.

When mid-day tried to call the numbers given to see what their response would be, here’s what we encountered. One engineer was peeved about being woken up at 7am, while another was worried that the public could see her Whatsapp display pictures. Another one said he was on sick leave, while yet another said she had been transferred and her name should not have been on the list. The rest seemed bewildered that their personal numbers had been made public. Also, two numbers had nine digits, while one had eleven.

Nowhere to go: A pothole-riddled road in Kanjurmarg Pic/Datta Kumbhar

When we asked the Municipal Commissioner Ajoy Mehta why the road engineers were not informed about the advertisement, he said, “It was done as per the High Court directive.” Coming down heavily on the BMC for the bad state of the city’s roads, the Bombay High Court had, on July 16, directed the civic body to make the phone numbers of all its road engineers public. The HC was hearing a suo motu PIL on the roads. The directive came after complaints that the BMC’s app for pothole repairs was dysfunctional.

'We didn't know!
Ramkaran Yadav, A ward:
(Did not answer calls)

Bharat Kedar, B ward:
(Did not answer calls)

Vinay Umbarje, C ward:
“I have got 5-6 calls from the morning. Many people were arguing with me, asking why the condition of the roads was so bad. Their tone was rude.”

Rahul Kolhe, D ward:
“Of the 4-5 complaints I got, only one was genuine. Others were related to flooding and bad patches.”

Suryawanshi, E ward:
(Phone was not reachable)

Vijay Pimpledohkar, F/North ward:
“I was woken up at 7am by a complainant. I had no idea my number had been published in newspapers. It was only after the complainant told me, that I found out. I got more than 10 calls, with each person sending around 20 pictures to my whatsapp account. Only 50% were related to pothole repairs.”

Madhav Kulkarni, F/South ward:
“I have got 2-3 calls so far. The first call came at 9.30 am. Tomorrow, the BMC is not working, yet we will have to respond to these calls.”

Rathod, G/North:
Disconnected the call after listening to mid-day’s questions

Sanket Bhujbal, G/South:
(Did not answer his phone)

Rohit Aphale, H/east:
(Did not answer his phone)

Kartik Gandhi, H east:
“I got the first call around 8.30 am. I didn't know my number was going to be published in the newspaper, but we were told to attend to any complaints in our wards.”

Dinesh Bhosale, H/West:
“The department did not even notify me about this. I had no idea that my personal number would be given out like this.”

Hiren Gandhi, K West:
“I am not allowed to speak to the media. Please contact the PRO for comment.”

Milind Jadhav, K West:
(Did not respond to calls)

Manoj Pandey, K East:
(His number in the advertisement was wrongly printed with only nine digits.)

Nitin Sonane, K East:
“I am on leave for the past two days as I am not well. That’s why I was unaware that our names were being published in newspapers. My phone was switched off all day because I was unwell, but I received a call in the evening where the commuter wanted to check if it was a valid number.”

Nemade Mahesh, P South:
“I did not know that my name and number had been printed in the newspaper. I received three calls and a few whatsapp messages. But, all of them were cooperative and there was no problem.”

Sachin Bhurke, P South:
“I did not receive any calls from commuters. We knew that a few officials’ names were going to be printed but we did not know that those would be ours.”

Sagar Charude, P North:
(Disconnected our calls)

Jagdish Sarang, P North:
(Calls went unanswered)

Girish Chouhan, R South ward:
“I can’t tell you how many calls I got, please call on the BMC landline. This is my personal number. It was given wrongly without my permission.”

Archana Jadhav, R North ward:
“I have been transferred now. I got a call and a few messages. I had to give them the number of the person concerned. I did not know that my number was going to be published in the paper. As I am not in the ward, I was surprised when I got the messages and the call.”

Nerulkar, R Central:
“I got 6-7 calls. The complaints were about Link Road, Yogi Nagar, Chanwarkar Road and R M Bhattad Road. The first call was at 11.15 am and the people who called spoke nicely. I knew my number was going to be published in the paper as I had seen it on whatsapp.”

Sachin Yadav, L ward:
“I did not know my number was being published. And, I did not receive a single call or complaint.”

Yogesh Mongal, M east:
“I didn't know about the numbers being given out. I should have been informed that personal information was going to be published. I got my first whatsapp message at 11.30 am.”

Sachin Kakade, M west:
“I had no idea that my number would be published in the newspaper, but I knew that the court had ordered us to address the bad roads issue. I did not get any calls or whatsapp messages though.”

Nikhil Koli, T ward:
“I was unaware that my number would be made public and was shocked to receive calls and whatsapp images. We were not taken into confidence about making our personal numbers public. We were told Facebook pages are to be made of different wards as platforms for public to post their complaints regarding potholes. That seems to been forgotten. There is also a mobile application. We were never officially informed that we would have to accept calls on our personal numbers. I got calls about potholes on ACC Road in Mulund and Tata Colony.”

Dashrath Supe, S ward:
“A mobile application has been launched but that process ends at complaint registration because there is no user friendly technical support to forward that complaint to contractors and respond to the complainant after the repair work is done. Now with this new system, we do not have exact guidelines. I received complaints about potholes in Tagore Nagar in Viklhroli but was not expecting such calls at all on my personal number.”

Savita Wagh, N ward:
“It was a shocker to receive these calls on my personal number. We were given no warning. Numbers can be misused these days, which raises safety concerns. Had we known about this initiative, we could have submitted alternative mobile numbers dedicated to receiving such complaints.”

Expertspeak
Jitendra Gupta, a road expert: “As per the HC order, in case of any pothole complaints in their area, the local official is responsible for it. So, it is unacceptable for them to express unhappiness that their personal numbers were made public. People will approach them only during the monsoon because of the potholes. These people only want high salaries, but are unwilling to put in the work required.”

Shyama Kulkarni, civic activist: “BMC is trying to pass the buck by sharing the numbers as they know they have made a big mess of the roads. It is wrong of them to share the engineers’ numbers without consulting them. They should have done proper research before the monsoon rather than share officers’ numbers in the middle of it”

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