Hyderabad: Rain-battered roads give a torrid time for motorists

Hyderabad: The recent spell of heavy rain left several roads battered, leaving commuters vexed and frustrated. Even before the onset of monsoon, city roads were riddled with potholes and severe drainage overflow. Motorists across the city face hardships while commuting to their destinations.

The unpreparedness of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to tackle rain has become a serious concern with bad and uneven roads. Driving through these roads has become a risky affair. On various stretches, large crater-sized potholes on roads are formed. The severely battered roads and the subsequent waterlogging have been causing traffic jams and health problems for commuters.

Damaged roads and potholes can be found at vital lanes, including the ones at Ameerpet, Begumpet, Indira Nagar, Langer Houz, Nampally, Tolichowki, Malakpet, Saidabad, Chaderghat, Bandlaguda, Falaknuma, Karwan, Jiyaguda, Amberpet, Puranapul, Bahadurpura, Kishan Bagh, and many other areas. Also, roads in western part of the city have been battered by rains.

Several netizens took to X (formerly Twitter) to express their grievances tagging official concerns. To show poor quality roads, images and videos of those damaged and filled with potholes are being posted. “Driving on several roads in the city has turned into a nightmare for citizens,” a commuter posted.

Another netizen, sharing a video of a road filled with sludge, posted “heavy rain-wrecked roads in Hyderabad turning commuting into a nightmare. Stretches near construction sites are the worst affected.”

Digging works undertaken by various departments such as cables, drainage, water pipelines and other projects, which are not levelled on time, are causing severe inconvenience to the commuters. The ongoing works and incomplete works are the major reasons for making the roads’ condition turn bad to worst.

During rainy season the city roads turn into accident-prone areas. Dug-up roads at various places pose a threat to residents. According to social activists, rains have exposed the poor-quality roads laid by GHMC as well as private agencies under the Comprehensive Road Maintenance Programme (CRMP). Roads in several areas and internal roads are severely damaged, causing inconvenience to the commuters. “It’s quite surprising that newly-laid roads are unable to withstand rain, and are washed out,” said Mohammed Ahmed, a social activist.

The GHMC officials said to make roads smooth for motorists, it would take some time to fill potholes as dry weather should prevail to take up patch work. ‘It’s not possible to fill potholes, as bitumen will get peeled off during rain’.

Meanwhile, the GHMC contractors protested at the civic body's headquarters demanding clearance of dues estimated approximately at Rs 1,300 crore for more than a year. They gathered at the contractors’ association, which is on the premises of the GHMC head office, and said they had decided to stop all civil and monsoon-related works till they are paid. The contractors expressed their anger that the BRS government carried out works and kept bills pending.

They requested Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to support them and clear the pending bills.