Per LODHA R.M., J.: - By our order dated 16th August, 2006, we directed the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM), Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT), Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) and Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) to ensure that by 30th August, 2006, pot-holes on the roads within their jurisdiction are filled up by maintaining proper quality control. The direction was that the roads are put in good condition by carrying out necessary repairs by these authorities within their jurisdiction by 30th August, 2006. We further directed that these authorities have to ensure that such roads continue to be in good condition thereafter, The Chief Engineer (Roads), MCGM, the Superintending Engineer of MMRDA, the Chief Engineer of MbPT, the Executive Engineer of MSRDC and the Executive Engineer of TMC, were directed to submit their compliance report. In that order, we made it clear that officers submitting compliance report shall be held personally liable and responsible if the Court receives any complaint about bad condition of the roads within their respective jurisdiction. 2. These officers failed to meet the deadline is apparent as the task of filling up all the pot-holes on the roads in the city of Greater Mumbai and Thane remains incomplete. 3. Pursuant to our order, Shri Mohan Kadam, the Chief Engineer (Roads & Traffic), MCGM, has filed his affidavit, It appears from his affidavit that on 18th of August, 2006, he issued direction to all the Assistant Commissioners of the Wards and the Zonal Chief Engineers (Roads) to attend to all the pot-holes/bad patches within their jurisdiction before 27th of August, 2006 and report to him the work undertaken every day. He is also said to have directed the Assistant Commissioner of the Wards and Zonal Dy. Chief Engineers (Roads) that while executing the work, proper methodology and quality are ensured. The summary of pot-holes attended as on 30th August, 2006, annexed to his affidavit shows that in all 43074 pot-holes/bad patches were detected on the roads within the jurisdiction of MCGM and out of that, 42941 potholes/bad patches have been attended to and 133 pot-holes/bad patches still remain to be attended. 4. Though the said affidavit is not very clear as to the period during which these 43074 pot-holes surfaced and detected, upon our query to Mr. 4. Though the said affidavit is not very clear as to the period during which these 43074 pot-holes surfaced and detected, upon our query to Mr. K.K. Singhvi, Senior Counsel for the MCGM in this regard, he submitted that these pot-holes (43074) were detected during the period from the month of June 2006 to 30th August, 2006. He submitted that after the order was passed by this Court on 16th of August, 2006, the pot-holes were attended to, the work of repairs of pot-holes was done during day and night and that the quality control of that has been maintained. He submitted that the remaining 133 pot-holes are being attended to and shall be completed within short time. 5. The fact that 43074 potholes have occurred in a span of three months on the roads within the jurisdiction of the MCGM shows that the quality of the work on roads within the city of Mumbai is far from satisfactory. Despite representations being made to the Court, time and again that the MCGM has been executing the work on roads (new as well as repairs) with proper methodology and quality control, the number of potholes that have surfaced during the period of three months speaks otherwise and casts doubt on their claim. 6. It is pertinent to note that the recommendations made in the report of the Standing Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) on roads in Greater Mumbai have been accepted by the MCGM. If the recommendations contained therein about the maintenance of roads is strictly adhered to, we fail to understand as to why the problem of bad roads crop up now and then. On the earlier date of hearing i.e. 16th August, 2006, we wanted to know from Mr. KK Singhvi, with the recurring problem of bad roads, as to why a body like Ombudsman be not constituted. During the course of hearing today, the petitioners and their Counsel suggested that the Monitoring Committee, to oversee the proper implementation of STAC recommendations by the MCGM and for redressal of public grievances with regard to Roads in the Greater Mumbai, be constituted. We asked Mr. K.K. Singhvi about MCGMs views in the creation of Roads Monitoring Centre which could closely monitor the new work of roads, the maintenance and the preventive measures before monsoon for proper condition of the roads all through the year. Mr. KK. We asked Mr. K.K. Singhvi about MCGMs views in the creation of Roads Monitoring Centre which could closely monitor the new work of roads, the maintenance and the preventive measures before monsoon for proper condition of the roads all through the year. Mr. KK. Singhvi, the Senior Counsel submitted that the members of STAC are eminent, they meet every two months and give necessary advice to the MCGM. He did not seem to be agreeable to the suggestion of constitution of a Monitoring Committee or creation of the Roads Monitoring Centre. He was, however, not averse if the STAC was expanded by nomination of some eminent persons from diverse fields. 7. The recommendations made about maintenance of roads in the report of the STAC have been accepted by the MCGM. In· the summary of recommendations, paragraph 17 deals with the repairs of potholes, which provides that the pothole repairs should be given proper attention; this work must be carried out in a more scientific and systematic manner. Detailed suggestions for repairs of potholes during monsoon have been given in chapter 23 of the report. Paragraph 23.4 deals with filling of potholes during rains which reads thus : "23.4 Filling of Potholes During Rains Potholes get formed on asp halted roads in monsoon because of various reasons such as lack of periodical preventive maintenance, stagnation of water on surface for a long time, lack of efficient sub-surface drainage, continuous rains for a long period of time etc. In the city of Mumbai the time available to fill potholes by creating ideal conditions is restricted to 1 A.m. To 5 A.M. in the early morning due to severe traffic conditions. One of the requirements to obtain ideal condition is dry weather spell of at least 4 hours before and after filling of potholes. It is observed that in Mumbai there are at least two wet spells during monsoon lasting for a week each with continuous rains, heavy or light drizzles. It is also seen that occurrence of potholes is more predominant during these spells as the pavement is beaten by traffic in soaked condition continuously giving no chance to obtain ideal conditions of dry spell required for successful filling of potholes. Many mixes have been tried, as learnt from Road Department, by using cut back, emulsions and non bituminous binders such as polymers, fast setting cements etc. Many mixes have been tried, as learnt from Road Department, by using cut back, emulsions and non bituminous binders such as polymers, fast setting cements etc. No method is proved to be successful, lasting and economical. It is also seen that the conventional method of filling with brick aggregate building debris to give temporary relief during such continuous wet spell and replacing the same with bituminous hot or cold mixes during subsequent dry spells in relatively more successful and economical method. It is, therefore, recommended that this method should continue to be adopted with adequate care of removing the metal and building debris in dry spell, cutting the pothole into a proper square or rectangular shape with vertical edges and then filling up of pot-hole by following the specification described in details in Government Circular, B & C Deptt. No. HNR 1165/41766(e)-G dt. 20/5/66 regarding repairs to potholes in Asphalt Roads in Monsoon in monsoon conditions with due modifications and as described in paras 9.4.2 and 9.4.3 of Chapter 9. Compaction of the material filled in should receive special attention. n 8. We, thus, find that the procedure to fill in the potholes during rains is set out in detail in the report of the STAC. What is needed is strict adherence to the said procedure by the engineers as well as the contractors. By following the said guidelines, recurrence of potholes on the roads in the Greater Mumbai during monsoon in large number can be easily reduced. 9. It is the obligation of the Civic Authorities and the other agencies of the State to secure to the public the means of communication in good and proper condition. There cannot be any justification for the bad roads in the financial capital of the country. The people of Mumbai contribute hugely to the revenue of the Centre, the State and the Civic Body. Are they not entitled to the good civic amenities including roads in good condition? How long the citizenry would continue to suffer bad roads? In the context of the constitutional provisions, the existence of roads in reasonable conditions is embraced in the citizens right to life. Every person is entitled to life as enjoined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The directive principles have been read into Article 21 to make life more meaningful and not mere its existence. In the context of the constitutional provisions, the existence of roads in reasonable conditions is embraced in the citizens right to life. Every person is entitled to life as enjoined under Article 21 of the Constitution of India. The directive principles have been read into Article 21 to make life more meaningful and not mere its existence. Good roads are the necessity to the life. There has to be roads for communication in reasonable condition in view of the constitutional imperatives. This is well settled. It needs no emphasis. It is thus imperative for the MCGM to make available proper roads to the people in the city of Mumbai through out the year. The Corporation has to discharge its constitutional and legal obligations unfailingly. What we have said above is applicable equally to all the other authorities like Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, Mumbai Port Trust, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation, the Public Works Department and the Thane Municipal Corporation. It is their duty, responsibility and obligation to provide proper roads within their jurisdiction to the commuters through out the year. By not doing so, these authorities may expose themselves to serious consequences by infringing the valuable rights of the people. Lest it must be forgotten, bad roads mean physical damage, huge economic loss and more accidents. Who will be responsible for all this? Obviously, if the condition of the roads does not improve in the Greater Mumbai and Thane, the liability, civil and criminal, has not only to be fastened on the contractors but also the officers of these bodies responsible for this mess. 10. Turning now to the affidavits of Shri Shrinivas "Ramakant Nandargikar, Chief Engineer of MMRDA; Shri Satish Vyanktesh Patki, Executive Engineer of MSRDC and the affidavit of Shri Mohan Vasant Patwardhan, Dy. Chief Engineer of MbPT and the report (without any affidavit) submitted by the City Engineer, Thane Municipal Corporation, Thane, we find that pursuant to our order dated 16th of August, 2006, these public bodies/authorities did start work for filling, up the potholes but despite our direction to complete the work by 30th August, 2006, ( they failed to complete the work (100%) within their respective jurisdiction. 11. 11. The Chief Engineer, MMRDA assured us that within four weeks from today on the roads within the jurisdiction of MMRDA, there shall not be a single pothole and even with regard to the roads which are, under concretization, the carriagewayprovided to the public shall be smooth and pot-hole free. 12. On behalf of MSRDC, their Executive Engineer assured us that save and except the Thane-Ghodbunder Road, all other roads and flyovers within their jurisdiction shall be pot-hole free. He also assured us that even where the roads are under repairs or under concretization, the carriageway shall be put in good condition. As regards Thane-Ghodbunder Road, he assured us that within four weeks from today, the said road shall also be put in a good motorable condition. 13. The Additional Chief Engineer, MbPT submitted that the roads made available to the public within the jurisdiction of MbPT, shall be pot-hole free within one week from today. 14. The City Engineer, Thane Municipal Corporation assured us that within one week from today, the remaining work of repairs of potholes shall be completed and all "roads within its jurisdiction shall be pothole free; and all these roads shall be in proper condition. 15. By not adhering to the dead line for repairs of all the pot-holes, we could have ordered some action against these senior officers but we did not do so as what mattered most to us was to ensure that the, people of Mumbai and Thane get proper motorable roads for the commuting which is their constitutional and legal right. If the things do not improve, the State Government may be asked by us to step in and llso consider the constitution of a body like ‘Ombudsman for Roads or the creation of ‘Roads Monitoring Centre. L6. As of now, we pass the following order:- ORDER i. The composition of the Standing Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) is enlarged by nominating the following three members:- A)Shri Mihir Desai, Advocate, B) Shri Gerson DCunha, Activist, C) Shri Sudir Badami, Professer and I.I.T. Alumni. ii. The Secretary of the STAC is, accordingly, directed to include the aforesaid three members in the STAC and invite them in all the meetings that may be held henceforth. iii. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai is expected to implement the advice and recommendations that may be given by STAC to it from time to time. iv. ii. The Secretary of the STAC is, accordingly, directed to include the aforesaid three members in the STAC and invite them in all the meetings that may be held henceforth. iii. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai is expected to implement the advice and recommendations that may be given by STAC to it from time to time. iv. The Chief Engineer (Roads and Traffic), MCGM, shall ensure the completion of the remaining work of potholes filling and the repairs of the roads which got damaged during the rains as early as possible and in no case later than one week from today. v. We extend time of four weeks from today to MMRDA to complete the work of potholes filling and repairs of bad patches on the roads within their jurisdiction. All roads (particularly, the carriageway) within the jurisdiction of MMRDA shall be pot-hole free after four weeks. vi. We direct the MSRDC to complete the remaining work of potholes filling and repairs of bad patches in their roads within 15 days from today. For the purposes of completion of the repairs of Thane-Ghodbunder Road, we grant further time of four weeks. vii. The MbPT is given further time of one week to ensure that their roads made available to the public are put in a good condition and without any potholes. viii. The Chief Engineer (Roads & Traffic), MCGM; the Chief Engineer, MMRDA; the Chief Engineer, MbPT; the Executive Engineer, MSRDC and the City Engineer, TMC shall submit their compliance reports immediately on the expiry of the time granted to them for completion of the work as afore-directed. ix. In the compliance report, the aforesaid authorities shall state about the action already taken or proposed to be taken against erring contractors for the defective or shoddy work by invoking default clause under the contracts. x. As already indicated in our order dated 16th August, 2006, the aforesaid officers of the respective Corporation and authorities shall be personally liable and responsible for the non-implementation and non-compliance of the order completely. 17. x. As already indicated in our order dated 16th August, 2006, the aforesaid officers of the respective Corporation and authorities shall be personally liable and responsible for the non-implementation and non-compliance of the order completely. 17. By way of a footnote, we may observe that we are not oblivious of the hard work put in by the MCGM and the other authorities in carrying out the work directed in the order dated 16th of August, 2006 but in view of the deadline set in our order dated 16th of August, 2006, we would have really appreciated if more hard work was put in and the work was completed within time. Now they must complete the work within the extended time. 18. As regards the difficulties highlighted by the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai in execution of the roads works as per the note dated 16-8-2006, we are informed that all the 16 utility agencies referred to in the order dated 16-8-2006 have been served. We shall deal with this aspect and the other aspects subsequently. Stand over to 4th of October, 2006. Order accordingly.