Mumbai dug up: mid-day’s ground report exposes BMC’s botched planning

Road concreting work at Madh-Marve (Aksa-Madh stretch) on April 1, 2025 (right) Road concreting work in progress at Hindu Colony, Dadar, on April 14, 2025. Pic/Ashish Raje

Mumbai currently resembles a chaotic treasure hunt, with nearly every street and bylane dug up - for road concreting, utility repairs, Metro works, or forgotten infrastructure that suddenly demands attention. In some areas, roads are freshly concreted, only to be dug up again to relay missed-out amenities. Officials monitoring the works claim there's "method in the madness," and that small stretches are being taken up one at a time. But the sheer scale of this operation is taking a massive toll on citizens - from walkers and motorists to the elderly and disabled.

Emergency vehicles are forced to take long diversions, delaying response times. In many areas, hospital access roads are dug up with no viable alternative routes. Despite the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, 2016, which mandates accessible infrastructure, Mumbai's footpaths and streets remain largely non-compliant. For the city's 4 lakh-plus disabled residents, navigating this mess has become nearly impossible.

IN PHOTOS: Mid-Day’s ground report exposes BMC’s poor planning for Mumbai roads

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City-wide misery

mid-day reporters scouted five zones - south, central, east, west, and north Mumbai - to document the impact of the digging drive. This five-part campaign will focus on key problem areas: walkability and footpaths, emergency access, accountability, missed deadlines, and potential solutions. "This is clearly a BMC-created crisis," said Rishi Aggarwal, founder of the Walking Project. "Many roads taken up for concreting were in good condition. Public money is being wasted while citizens suffer. Participatory budgeting at the ward level could have avoided this."

14th Road in Khar completely dug up for concreting in February

Savitha Rao, founder of India Positive Citizen, was blunt in her criticism: "Mumbai should enter the Guinness Book of Records for having the most dug-up yet functional roads. Walking here requires [javelin champion] Neeraj Chopra-level agility. For many, the lockdown never ended. Senior citizens remain confined, while those with visual or mobility impairments are at daily risk. Pavements don't exist, so people walk on roads, endangering themselves and others."

Citizen activist GR Vora called the city's obsession with concreting "madness." "The existing roads were decent. If road contract corruption were curbed, even tar roads would last longer. Instead, in the wisdom of the chief minister and municipal commissioner, hundreds of crores are being spent unnecessarily, while residents suffer noise, dust, and bottlenecks."

Root of the problem

Experts say the lack of underground ducting for utilities is a key issue. "Without ducts, every time a new utility line needs fixing, roads are dug again - even concrete ones," said Rao. "This poor planning delays emergency fixes and increases costs. It's criminal negligence."

Madh-Marve road dug up for concreting work on April 1, 2025. File Pics/Ashish Raje

Walking Project's programme director Vedant Mhatre added, "The roadworks should have been staggered to avoid paralysing traffic. Pedestrian barricades and diversions were also lacking. The commissioner's recent order to stop simultaneous digging might help, but damage has already been done."

Why concrete roads

The road concreting project began in 2023. The BMC is spending Rs 12,000 crore to convert 702 km of tar roads into concrete. Before the monsoon, the civic body aims to complete 420 km of this work. The BMC has set a target to convert all roads under its jurisdiction to concrete by 2027. Of the total 2050 km of roads managed by the BMC, over 1350 km have already been converted.

Explaining the rationale behind the project, officials said that due to Mumbai's heavy rainfall, traditional asphalt roads frequently develop potholes. In contrast, concrete roads last for at least 20 years, whereas asphalt roads typically last up to five years. Moreover, repairing potholes during the monsoon adds to maintenance costs.

Number crunching

As of April 5, 525 km of roads are dug up.
Of Mumbai's 2050 km of roads, 1224 km are already concreted.
By May 31, officials aim to complete 324 km of concretisation.
BMC plans to concrete 702 km of roads in 2121 stretches under two phases.