New Delhi

MCD to strengthen roads prone to water-logging

NEW DELHI: Following the Delhi High Court’s recent remarks about the Capital’s roads, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi has decided to act, improving and strengthening 68 identified roads prone to water-logging by providing concrete road surface.

The announcement was made by MCD Standing Committee chairman Vijender Gupta on Monday. He said the civic body would improve and strengthen the 68 roads which are prone to water-logging by providing ready-mixed concrete surface.

“It has been found that continuous water-logging depletes and washes away bituminous surface leading to potholes during the rainy season. So the MCD has decided that it will do away with bituminous surface on the roads that are prone to water-logging,” he said. “Road research has established that cement roads are much stronger and have a longer life when subjected to water-logging. MCD is striving to ensure that potholes that tend to become a perpetual public problem during the rainy season due to water-logging soon become a thing of the past. The use of ready-mixed concrete will not only provide longer life to the road surface but also ensure that the road construction improvement and strengthening is much more economical in the long run than the conventional bituminous road,” he added.

Mr. Gupta said the 68 roads to be improved have a total length of 177 km. “Special emphasis has been laid on improving roads in rural areas. As many as 20 roads will be improved in Narela Zone and 11 in Najafgarh Zone. Beside the rural areas, MCD will take up five roads in South Zone, three in Central Zone, nine in Shahdara (North) Zone, two in Shahdara (South) Zone, eight in Sadar Paharganj Zone, six in West Zone, two in Karol Bagh Zone and one road in Civil Lines Zone in the first phase,” he added.

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