Among the many reasons India ranks the worst in road deaths worldwide, perhaps the most wretched and shocking are potholes. This form of civic dereliction of duty is almost unique to India.- the phrase 'pothole death' is unheard of in most countries. Government data puts the 2016-20 annual average of such deaths as @2,300, which is a definite underestimate. The Kerala High Court has directed district collectors to pro actively avert these man- made disasters. Bombay HC is also constituting a special bench on the issue after authorities failed to implement its earlier orders on repairing potholes in Maharashtra. These are welcome baby steps but unless exemplary punishment is meted out to contractors doing shoddy work and the government engineers tasked with supervising the work, things are going to remain as they are. Unfortunately even the Motor Vehicles Act (amendment) 2019 provision for fining the designated authority, contractor, consultant or concessionaire upto Rs. 1 lakh for sub par work leading to road accidents is gathering cobwebs. Basic political and administrative will, and some exemplary punishments can de-hyphenate pothole deaths from Indian roads.
