Relief from jarring rides: Kolkata lifeline to get mastic asphalt coat
Times of India | 18 May 2025
12 Kolkata: After the road smoothening project along SP Mukherjee Road, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is now set to relay the thoroughfare with mastic asphalt keeping in mind the motorists' woes during the monsoon. The mastic asphalt will be transported through a special thermal container from a mastic asphalt plant in Rajarhat. This exercise is being followed as per WBPCB guidelines. "We have asked the agency concerned to transport mastic asphalt through a thermal container to abide by WBPCB guidelines," said a KMC roads department official.The road restoration work will be taken up in two phases. First, the civic body will relay the stretch between Hazra and Rashbehari intersection. After completing this stretch, the KMC roads department will proceed with the restoration of the stretch between Rashbehari crossing and Tollygunge rail bridge. According to a civic official, KMC has selected a private firm through an e-tender and now needs to issue a work order for the project, the cost of which is estimated at Rs 18 crore.A proposal to give SP Mukherjee Road a healing touch was passed at a recent mayor-in-council meeting and subsequently in the KMC monthly meeting. According to a KMC roads department official, major stretches of the arterial road need restoration as hurried repairs in the past have made SP Mukherjee Road a motorist's nightmare. The roads department has also proposed a special plan for the concretisation of a 1km stretch on the flank that leads to Rashbehari crossing from Hazra. The stretch where the KMC's water booster pumping station is located will be specially paved. At present, this segment develops craters frequently due to water seepage.Indiscriminate digging followed by unscientific repair is also one of the reasons why motorists suffer bumpy rides on SP Mukherjee Road, conceded a KMC roads department senior official.SP Mukherjee Road, along with Asutosh Mukherjee Road, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, and Chittaranjan Avenue, is a crucial alignment that connects Tollygunge in the south with Bagbazar in the north. "Since SP Mukherjee Road has become cratered, many motorists now prefer taking the narrow Sadananda Road and Pratapaditya Road. Now, if we are assured of a smooth ride, we may take SP Mukherjee Road more often," said Debasish Das, a Mudiali resident.