Residents of suburb say they have lost sleep for months as metal covers installed over ducts of several underground utilities make deafening rattling sounds when vehicles move over them; say BMC’s ‘thook-patti’ solutions just don’t work
BMC workers open a manhole to install a rubber tube in a bid to prevent rattling on Professor Almeida Park Road in Bandra West. Pic/By Special Arrangement
Metal covers installed over the ducts of underground utilities have been keeping Bandra residents up at night. Residents of at least eight areas have termed the covers poorly designed, stating that they are loose and rattle when vehicles pass over them, shattering the stillness of the night. Despite repeated complaints to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), residents have said that the only fix to their problem is a makeshift rubber tube inserted around the four corners of the covers, but these wear out within a few days due to traffic flow.
Sujata Kabraji, a resident of Perry Cross Road, said, “There are 14 to 16 covers that rattle throughout the night on Perry Cross Road alone. Every passing vehicle causes rattling to happen along the entire road. Even with our windows closed, we can hear these sounds throughout the night.” Kabraji complained to the civic body last month. “A senior official assured me that BMC would find a permanent solution. Meanwhile, staff inserted rubber tubes. At some places, they used fast-curing cement between the edge of the covers and the hole. This has reduced the sound to some extent, but has not completely taken care of the problem.”
Loose manhole covers at Bandra West’s Rizvi Complex. PIC/By Special Arrangement
She pointed out that the issue is persistent across Bandra, and shopkeepers from Pali market have also been facing the same problem. Maria D’Souza, a resident of Convent Road, said, “It is annoying and disturbing. Learner’s Academy and the popular eatery Candies, which see heavy footfall, are located in my area. So a lot of cars and other vehicles ply this road every day.” According to residents, the problem also exists on St Cyril Road, 1st Road near Professor Almeida Park, Professor Almeida Park Road, Sherly Rajan Road, Dr Peter Dias Road, and St John Baptist Road.
Responding to complaints from citizens, Asif Zakaria, former corporator from the area, wrote a letter to BMC on July 19, requesting a change in utility duct specifications amid ongoing road concreting work, which had been halted due to the monsoon. He said, “A significant problem observed in the completed stretches is the constant rattling sound generated by vehicles driving over the metal utility duct covers.
The current duct covers are inferior in quality, and many seem to have been supplied by contractors who are not adhering to the prescribed specifications.” Zakaria pointed out that, as the roads are under the defect liability period, the current duct design and specifications can be reviewed immediately. He told mid-day on Wednesday, “I have not received any response to the letter with details of how the BMC plans to solve this issue.”
BMC Speak
Additional Municipal Commissioner Abhijit Bangar said, “After complaints from residents of the area, the BMC has addressed the issue by using tar along the edges of the utility duct shafts, and by using rubber tubes to address the gap between the covers and duct openings. These methods are tried and tested and have worked in cases with similar complaints. We need to examine why they are not working in this case, and why the problem persists. This will be done. We are, in fact, in the middle of examining long-term solutions to this problem. For the residents’ immediate relief, the above measures have been taken.”
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