Pot holes of Mumbai

Pot holes of Mumbai and Mumbai rains are inseparable. Rains arrive and pot holes start appearing right after.  It seems like they are made for each other. At least the organizations responsible for the roads would want us to believe so.  These organizations are supposed to do something to ensure that roads are pot holes free. Do these organizations do anything to prevent pot holes from forming? No, they don’t. If they can’t do something to prevent pot holes from forming and if we have to live with the pot holes, then we should be doing something innovative and creative to ensure that we enjoy and celebrate their presence.

Here are some of my imaginations to live with the reality of pot holes:

Create a profile named Pot holes on Facebook. Pictures of pot holes can be uploaded and shared. We all can then like it. We can also start a cause on Facebook called “Save pot holes”. We can then protest filling up of these pot holes after monsoon. If they fill up the pot holes and kill them, we would then get used to good roads. It will become very difficult for us to adjust to pot hole ridden roads again in the next rainy season. Moreover, separation hurts.

We can organize a pot holes competition and have film stars to come and perform on stage to promote the competition. At the end of the show, the area with the biggest pot hole and the maximum number of pot holes should be awarded a cash prize to ensure that year after year their numbers can be maintained. Possibly the money could be utilized to create situations and circumstances so that new pot holes come up and existing ones grow larger in size. May be someday these pot holes will find mention in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Pot holes tourism. Pot holes are a rare site for developed nations. We can take pictures of pot holes and post it on online sites promoting tourism. We will generate good revenue out of it. I am sure these pot holes will give tough competition to the Goa and Kerala tourism industry.

Pot holes can be used for agriculture. The portion of the road having pot hole cannot be utilized any ways. Using it for agriculture will help boost our agricultural production thereby giving a thrust in the right direction for the Indian economy.

Students can do Phd on pot holes. They can then write books on the history, art, science and economics of pot holes.

The citizens of India can be provided training by the Indian Army to drive battle tanks on these pot hole ridden roads. Such trained soldiers can then join the Indian Army and protect our nation from our enemies. I think they can also join the Short Service Commission.

I know I am being sarcastic about the whole situation but then what else can be done about this. We all know that pot holes are growing only and only because of corrupt officials of the organizations responsible for construction and maintenance of roads. These officials allow contractors or should I say force contractors to create roads of inferior quality. The contractors pay bribes to the officials to bag contracts. Now after paying a hefty sum to the officials passing the contract, whatever little funds that remain will be utilized to do shoddy work.  Moreover, these roads are like the goose that lays golden egg. If you build a road that lasts for 4-5 years then next year there won’t be any contracts for repairing the roads. So, why would someone kill the goose?