Mumbai Commissioner Ashwini Bhide Tightens Civic Maintenance Supervision, Pushes In-House Repairs & Flood Preparedness In Suburbs

Mumbai: Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide on Wednesday directed civic officials to strengthen supervision in maintenance works and maximise the use of in-house municipal labour for routine infrastructure repairs instead of relying on contractors. During an inspection visit to civic maintenance facilities in the Andheri and Vile Parle areas of the western suburbs, Bhide said that while the Maintenance Department has adequate manpower, the supervision by Junior Engineers (JEs) lacked the expected level of rigor.

She also instructed assistant commissioners of all civic wards to review staffing levels at every maintenance post and ensure that routine works such as laying curb stones, repairing footpaths and fixing road dividers are carried out primarily by municipal workers. The commissioner also directed officials to minimise the appointment of contractors for regular maintenance activities and issue necessary instructions to assistant engineers, secondary engineers and junior engineers.

Bhide inspected sanitation posts, pesticide department facilities, road repair and storage depots, and maintenance posts during the visit. While interacting with sanitation workers, she instructed officers to maintain sanitation and pest control facilities in good condition and ensure adequate service amenities for staff.

The commissioner further directed assistant commissioners to conduct regular inspections of civic checkpoints in their respective jurisdictions and prepare detailed regional maintenance plans. She said the plans should be implemented in phases through a combination of in-house labour and contractors wherever required to ensure visible improvement in road maintenance works across Mumbai.

As part of the inspection, Bhide also reviewed pre-monsoon preparedness works at the solid waste management post near Andheri Railway Station, the pesticide post at Tata Compound in Vile Parle (West), and the conservation post at Bajaj Marg in Vile Parle (West). She additionally visited Irla Nala, SNDT Nala and the Gajdarbandh pumping station.

Highlighting flood mitigation measures, Bhide instructed officials to ensure that the Irla Rainwater Harvesting Centre in Juhu functions at full capacity on a continuous basis to provide relief from waterlogging in areas such as Milan Metro, Cooper Hospital, Vile Parle railway station and the Juhu-Vile Parle Development Scheme area.

She also directed immediate implementation of measures to prevent solid waste and floating debris from flowing towards Juhu beach.

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