Mumbai:
If any of the many potholes in the city have damaged your person or property in any way, go ahead, send the monthly bills to the civic commissioner that is the motto of Dilip Moorkoth (35), a Powai resident who is encouraging people not to simply sigh with frustration at potholes, but take some concrete action to address the situation instead.
This simply means that the next time you sprain you ankle by stepping into a pothole, or damage your car because of them, you should send the bills for automobile repair, extra fuel or medical treatment to the BMC Commissioner Subodh Kumar.
Moorkoth, a senior management executive with a private company, has taken up the crusade against the city's potholes, initiating a unique BMC Commissioner Ko Bill Bhejo campaign on the popular social networking site Facebook.
Barely a week old, the forum, has received the enthusiastic approval of 545 Mumbaikars, all of whom are fed up with the civic body's inaction on pothole-ridden roads in the city.
"Mumbai is the fastest moving city in the entire country, but we are forced to slow down because of these potholes.I, like any other Mumbaikar, have been facing this problem for several years now, and have made attempts to lodge several complaints at the BMC and the MMRDA helplines. But the situation hasn't improved," said Dilip.
As part of the campaign, Moorkoth has appealed to Mumbaikars to join him in collecting monthly bills for expenses incurred owing to potholes.
He intends to present these bills to the civic chief shortly, so he can forward them to contractors who have failed miserably in making good their many promises of repairing potholes properly.
He believes that this is only a just arrangement, considering that Mumbaikars are also the highest taxpayers in the country.
On August 15, 2008, a frustrated Moorkoth had lodged a non-cognisable complaint at the Powai police station against the MMRDA and the BMC, submitting the many complaint token numbers that he received in earlier attempts. As anticipated, this police complaint also failed to yield any results.
He added, "As a tax-paying resident of the city, I have noted time and again how potholes have slowed down traffic in the city, increased fuel consumption for vehicles, and caused physical pain and stress to motorists.
The city is suffering because of the negligence of a few dozen civic officials, who are responsible for road maintenance. I even suffered a personal tragedy when a close friend suffered a miscarriage because of potholes on the roads."
He added, "The roads leading to south Mumbai, which houses the Mantralaya, civic offices and residences of ministers have well maintained roads throughout the year. It is the suburbs that suffer the most.
It is outrageous that the authorities have not penalised officers or contractors who are responsible for these murderous stretches, responsible for the many accidents on the roads.
The system needs a serious control mechanism and officers across departments need to be held accountable. There is need for a quality audit within the system on a regular basis," he explained.
Dilip has now applied for a postbox number, to which the supporters of his cause can forward their monthly bills.