Jaipur, June 20
With the onset of monsoon in Jaipur, glaring lapses in civic infrastructure are beginning to surface. Even mild rainfall is leading to water-logging and road damage.
In a major incident on Friday, a large section of the road near TN Mishra Marg and the Ganga-Jamuna Petrol Pump on Gopalpura Bypass caved in, significantly affecting traffic movement in the area. The collapsed section measures approximately 60 feet in length, 25 feet in width, and 15 feet in depth, creating a massive pothole and raising serious safety concerns.
The incident triggered a dispute between officials of the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) and the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), with both departments blaming each other for the collapse.
JDA’s Superintending Engineer, Deepak Mathur, attributed the incident to a burst water pipeline, stating, “The road caved in due to damage in the water line. Once PHED repairs the line, we will begin road restoration.â€
On the other hand, PHED officials argued that the road construction itself was faulty.
According to an official, "rainwater seeped through the poorly constructed road, eroding the ground beneath and leading to the collapse. The water line got damaged as a result of the road sinking, not the other way around".
This incident highlights serious flaws in coordination between city departments and raises questions about the quality of urban infrastructure and preparedness for the monsoon season. Commuters and residents have expressed frustration over frequent road damages and the lack of preventive maintenance.
Authorities have cordoned off the area, and repair work is expected to begin once the inter-departmental responsibilities are resolved. Actually heavy rains have lashed the city since Friday afternoon.
Around 23.6mm rainfall has been registered in the city till 5.30 in evening thereby bringing a drastic decrease in temperature. The city recorded a dip of 10 degrees Celsius, bringing in minimum temperature of 25 degrees Celsius while maximum temperature in city came down to 28.3 degrees Celsius.
— IANS
Reader Comments
This is shameful! Every monsoon we see the same story - roads collapsing like biscuits in chai. ₹1000 crore Smart City project but can't even build roads that last one rainy season. When will JDA take responsibility instead of playing blame games? 😤
As someone who uses Gopalpura bypass daily, this is terrifying! What if this had happened when vehicles were passing? The depth is enough to swallow a car whole. Authorities must conduct structural audits of all major roads before monsoon hits properly.
Typical government departments - more interested in passing the buck than solving problems. Meanwhile common people suffer traffic jams and danger. Why can't JDA and PHED work together like professionals instead of behaving like political parties?
The silver lining - at least the temperature dropped nicely! ðŸŒ§ï¸ But seriously, this shows how poor our urban planning is. Jaipur is growing fast but infrastructure isn't keeping up. We need better materials and proper drainage systems, not just surface-level repairs.
Contractors use substandard materials and officials turn blind eye after taking cuts. Entire system is corrupt from top to bottom. Until we have strict accountability with jail time for such negligence, nothing will change. My tax money goes down these sinkholes!
While criticism is valid, let's also appreciate the prompt barricading and no casualties reported. Hope repairs are done properly this time with proper underground drainage. Jaipur's heritage beauty deserves better infrastructure matching its royal history.
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