Good roads are a fundamental right of every citizen and Governments, State and Central, are bound to provide pothole-free roads under the right to life which is a statutory obligation. This has been the landmark judgement of Bombay High Court recently. A Bench of Justice Abhay Oka and C.V Bhadang directed the civic administration in Mumbai, Thane and three other municipalities in Thane District as well Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), Maharashtra State Roads Development Coprn, (MSRDC) and Mumbai Prot Trust to maintain all roads under their control and keep them pothole-free. The Court’s intervention in providing a safe and better roads for the people is a welcome move. But here in Jammu and Kashmir drive on any road except the National Highway manned by National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) one will encounter only potholes and hardly any stretch drivable. In Jammu itself within the city limits and in the peripheral areas driving is a nightmare for any road users. Some of the spots are really scary and it tests the driver’s skill how he or she manoeuvers from the area. For the government it looks good roads are no priority except for some VIP areas like Gandhi Nagar where the so-called black topping is much better than the some of the city roads which bears heavy traffic onslaught. The work is on at a priority level so that Sahib Log do not suffer any hardship while commuting on the roads. All city roads are managed by Jammu Municipal Corporation and the type of work carried out previously speaks the standards maintained by the civic body. It reflects a clear nexus of convenience while executing the works. Going back to the Bombay High Court judgement the directions should work as an eye-opener for others especially the civic bodies in providing safe roads for the people. Will Jammu and Kashmir civic bodies take a cue from such interventions and assure of providing pothole-free roads for the people of the State?
