The photograph appeared in the Times of India, with the caption - Do potholes have to be this big to catch the officials attention?
Thankfully, it was noticed during the day and before the whole portion caved in. Otherwise one shudders to think of the casualties. The road is a major link between the twin cities and also leads to a spot where city dwellers like to relax in the evenings.
Potholes are not restricted to our city or our part of the world. It appears to be a major problem even in the West. But the official apathy here is unequalled. We could even win a few awards.
Apparently, Fidel Castro in 1995, proclaimed he ''would not vote for the New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, not just because he didn't invite him to dinner, but because on his way into town from the airport there were such enormous potholes.'' Potholes seem to be a problem even now, but one can appeal for action. If a vehicle is damaged by a pothole, a claim can be filed with the city of New York . New York State Trial Lawyers Association have also formed the Big Apple Pothole Protective Committee.
It will be ages before we have some helplines like these. The city municipality website was launched with fanfare. It gave us some hope that there was someone you could turn to for assistance. Initially, I must admit, there was some response. It is not easy to find out which ward, circle, zone you belong to and then find out which of the departments to direct the complaint. That is a huge effort by itself. But of late, I wonder if the officials log in to check the grievances at all. The status of the complaint remains unchanged. And by then, we learn to accept and live with the situation. The tolerant nation that we are!
The millions that are lost in damage to health - the effect is enormous on the back and neck - and vehicles are huge. Are any statistics at all? Let us hope the size of this particular pothole would have at least woken up some official to take action.
