Bengaluru: Even as potholes persist and reappear after being apparently fixed, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has flatly rejected 31% of the complaints pertaining to craters it received between April 1 and Dec 2 this year. As per the civic body's data, 4,810 of the 15,403 complaints it received were rejected.
According to civic officials, the rejections are primarily attributed to three factors: Repeat complaints on the same issue, stretches of road undergoing long-term work such as whitetopping or major repair, and unattended complaints prematurely marked as closed.
"Many residents report the same pothole multiple times in an attempt to expedite the resolution process. These are redundant entries and could result in genuine issues being overlooked," an official explained.
Another BBMP official said many of the rejected complaints were filed by residents testing the grievance-lodging system. "They could be false complaints or have provided wrong location," he added.
"Also, potholes located on stretches designated for whitetopping or major projects taken up by BMRCL, BWSSB and road infrastructure division aren't prioritised for temporary fixes. Even if we do fix potholes during road repair works, they would again chip off and residents would be furious at us," the official added.
BBMP data also revealed that while 8,340 (54%) of the 15,403 complaints have been resolved, 690 are in the process of being fixed, and 1,266 are still open. Twenty-five complaints come under defect liability period where contractors have to fix it, while 272 are under LTS (long-term solution).
However, the civic body's claims have drawn angry responses from several Bengalureans. They are particularly incensed that unattended complaints were closed without any action being taken. This problem has been most evident in Bommanahalli, where residents claim potholes reported months ago have been falsely marked as resolved but have remained in the same hazardous state on the roads.
"It's incredibly frustrating to see the same pothole on my street every day, even after receiving a message from BBMP saying the complaint was resolved. The road is still dangerous and no one came to fix it," said Sreehari Ram, a resident of Bommanahalli.
Another resident, from Sahakaranagar, said, "The app said my complaint was fixed, but the pothole has only gotten worse. Why does BBMP close complaints without verifying the work? It's like they don't even care about public safety. There are so many potholes on Kodigehalli gate side, and BBMP is ignorant."
Confronted with the citizen resentment, BBMP officials, however, said: "We have acknowledged systemic issues in managing complaints and the need to improve transparency. During rain, it is very difficult to fix potholes, and in Bengaluru, the weather disrupts our work."
"I raised a complaint about a massive pothole on Kanakapura Road through Sahaaya 2.0 over a month ago, and to my shock, it was rejected without anyone even inspecting the site. The pothole is still there, causing daily traffic chaos and risking accidents. What's the point of this system if genuine issues are ignored?" said Raghav Rao, a commuter.