Stop Blame Game! Concerned Authorities Should be Sued for Pothole Injuries or Deaths?

Stop Blame Game! Concerned Authorities Should be Sued for Pothole Injuries or Deaths?

On the recent death of an 18-month old toddler who died after their two-wheeler hit a pothole in Udupi on 2 October, now the cops have booked the dad for his negligence-he is booked under Section 279 (for rash driving); 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life of others); and 304 A (causing death by negligence). Why only blame this poor dad–why not blame the NHAI and the Udupi City authorities for their negligence/carelessness by not fixing these potholes on this stretch of the road(which has claimed lives and resulted in injuries in the past). Bah humbug! Legal action should be taken against NHAI and Udupi City officials for ignoring this civic issue for a long time, which has claimed many lives. Police going after the rider for a pillion rider’s death is rubbish!

Mangaluru: After a gaping pothole killed 16-year-old Savitha in Bengaluru in May 2016, when citizens expected some concern and action from the state government- Instead, minister KJ George blamed motorists for being ‘bad drivers’, where he had said “First, learn to ride properly; don’t blame potholes for the deaths in the city.” Bah humbug! Once again, on the recent death of a 18-month old toddler who died after their two-wheeler hit a pothole in Udupi on 2 October, now the cops have booked the dad for his negligence-he is booked under Section 279 (for rash driving); 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life of others); and 304 A (causing death by negligence). Why only blame this poor dad–why not blame the NHAI and the Udupi City authorities for their negligence/carelessness by not fixing these potholes on this stretch of the road(which has claimed lives and resulted in injuries in the past). Bah humbug, in this case too!.

Within a week in Bengaluru, there has been one more death due to pothole yesterday, where a 47-year-old woman pillion rider was killed on the spot by a truck driver, while the two-wheeler rider was trying to negotiate a pothole-ridden road. Are the cops trying to book the rider who is only injured for his negligence- could be? In September 2015, a woman, riding pillion on her husband’s bike, fell and died of a head injury when the bike crashed in one of the many potholes of Bengaluru. But it is her husband who was blamed for the death, and the police had booked Om Prakash for criminal negligence following the death of his wife, 25-year-old Stuti Pandey. However, this move by the cops had triggered outrage on social media. But no matter what, the police said that it is routine, since in every accident case, the driver is booked. This stupid rule by the cops need to be stopped, booking a rider for no mistake of his-when the roads are potholed-ridden.

Now coming to our own Coastal city-just look at all the pothole-ridden roads that we have. Does MCC nor PWD nor NHAI officials care for the safety of the motorists, especially two-wheeler riders? Why would they? Because all these officials travel by four-wheelers and they don’t care about these potholes-it’s only the two-wheeler riders who bear the brunt of these dilapidated/pothole-ridden roads. Even though no deaths have been reported due to pothole accidents, but many two-wheeler riders have been injured- but there is no record of these pothole accident-because the injured persons don’t complain nor file a case.

Pinning responsibility on engineers and contractors for road accidents, it seems, is as difficult as imagining the city without potholes. So, who is to blame for the pitiable condition of the city’s roads, which sometimes leads to deaths? Well, it just seems to be a case of passing the buck. It’s only after an accident that you’ll notice MCC officials or traffic policemen filling potholes with concrete mix. Filling potholes is not policemen job-they can fill it up with concrete mix or mud, but it is just a temporary measure. They cannot take responsibility for bad roads, their concern is just traffic. It is the responsibility of MCC, PWD or NHAI to rectify the problem, before any life is lost or someone getting injured due to bad/potholed roads.

Even after a protest was held couple of days ago regarding the dilapidated road near Bendorewell (which we see every year during monsoon time), still MCC has not taken any action-even though the weather has been good. They always blame it on the weather that rains are hindering their work. If it’s raining, they cannot take up the work. When there is a death or accident due to bad roads, the road contractor/MCC should be held responsible and cases booked against the engineers concerned. Motorists who try to avoid potholes and meet with accidents cannot be blamed. After all, they know that if they ride on the pothole, they will fall. According to a Retd. senior traffic police officer said, “If the family of an accident victim files a complaint, police register a case. It is up to the Law and Order police to proceed against officials of MCC or other agencies who were responsible for maintenance of roads.”

Despite the literally gaping evidence of negligence by civic agencies, the police continue to treat their engineers and contractors as accused number two or three in such cases, while the motorists or bikers, who suffer the tragic consequences of their callousness, take the brunt of the blame. While the mushrooming of potholes in the city is causing many accidents, especially of two-wheeler riders,(although there had been no fatalities) the city police have found an easy way out by penalizing the riders. The provisions that could be used to accuse a person of culpable homicide need a relook.

On the other hand, civic agencies such as MCC, which is responsible for the upkeep of the roads, are not brought to book for accidents caused due to potholes. Experts suggest that the MCC should have its own emergency team to fill potholes as and when they are formed, rather than go through the time consuming tender process to deal with the problem. The story of potholes accidents in the city is both sad and alarming. Not only riders are getting injured, some seriously, in avoidable accidents, but alarmingly, the surviving victims are being held primarily responsible for the accident, while the civic agencies responsible for repair of the roads are treated more lightly.

The trend has raised concern and anger among Mangalureans who feel that the onus must lie with the civic agencies concerned in such cases. It is illogical to book the commuters in fatal accidents caused by the poor condition of roads, just like the father of the child was booked in Udupi. Even if the police book the bikers or motorists, the case against them will not stand in the courts for obvious reasons- After all, they have not committed any murder. While under the law, the rider has to be booked, practically speaking, it is the civic agency’s officials and contractors who need to be punished.

Enough is enough-citizens should rise and move the court regarding accidents/death caused by bad/potholed roads-just like they do it in Western countries, especially in US, where the kith and kin of the accident victim file a lawsuit against the concerned authorities for millions of dollars as compensation, if the death was due to their negligence. Here we follow most of the Western ways, but why not follow this lawsuit idea. Citizens have to approach the courts with strong evidence against civic agencies and contractors for road accidents caused by potholes. It will help the court decide who should be held responsible in such cases. The officials too will then be careful in the maintenance of the city’s infrastructure-if, not our lazy City officials will take it easy, start blaming each other- and we will see more pothole accidents- and also see more potholes appearing in this “Smart City” with No Smart City Officials?

But according to one former DGP where he sees nothing wrong in the police taking action against the motorist or biker responsible for an accident. “Whatever be the condition of the road, the rider needs to be careful to avoid a mishap. If an accident takes place, no matter what the reason, he or she has to be booked. Of course, if potholes have caused the accident, then the civic authorities should also be booked for contributory negligence,” he says. He, in fact, strongly supports the proposed amendment to the Motor Vehicle Act, to hike the penalty for negligent driving. “It is very rare for a motor vehicle driver to be jailed. So it is necessary to introduce severe imprisonment for road death cases,” he argues.

The problem with our MCC here is they have no proper emergency response team to fill up potholes regularly. Instead, it waits for the number of potholes to increase and then calls for tenders. Even then the potholes are not filled unscientifically. It is a huge scam. Every time there is road cutting in Mangaluru, neither the PWD, Mescom, other utility companies seem to be equipped to restore them and the MCC to end up either doing a shoddy job or not doing it at all. There is no mechanism to fill potholes speedily even when Minister UR Khader’s house is just a few blocks away from Bendorewell junction, which is filled with potholes.

Sadly it seems like no civic agency concerned is responsible for accidents caused by the poor condition of roads. Considering the increasing number of incidents, the civic agencies should have a huge responsibility. They need to not only fix the potholes but also footpaths. The callousness of government authorities in the face of the loss of life due to potholes, open drains, loose wires and so on, appalling. There is zero regard for human life. Post every mishap no one seems accountable. The way out could be to identify the contractors responsible for such accidents/deaths and ban them from bidding for government contracts for five years. Also, the concerned government engineer/ superior should be suspended pending investigation, and booked under sections relevant for causing such accidents due to negligence.

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