Manholes covered Nagpur roads now give smooth ride

To made rides on Nagpur roads less bumpy, the the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) has started leveling manholes with the road surface, starting from LaxmiNagar zone in South-West Nagpur. In another development, the work to shift electricity poles on 27 roads is almost nearing completion.

Laxmi Nagar Zone came up with this concept of having the manholes leveled with road surface and there has been good response from the citizens. In many parts, the manholes covers were above the road level. As a result, cover of each manhole would get damaged at least 4-5 times in a year. Major problem was they obstructed traffic movement leading to road mishaps.

On learning about the thermodrain manhole cover system, NMC implemented a pilot project worth Rs 50,000 which led to a huge demand from many localities. Now, NMC has carried out works of Rs 2.50 lakh in various parts of the zone. Tender process to issue further works of Rs 3.47 lakh is underway, sources said.

Bohare added that the thermodrain manhole covers are strong and fixed properly. These covers can sustain weight of 2-10 tonne. These covers are expensive but when compared to losses incurred from replacing covers provided by the NMC contractors each year, they are worth a buy.

The NMC may execute the project in remaining parts of the city in coming days, the sources said. The benefits of the project are already visible in many areas in the zone, including Bajaj Nagar Square, LAD Square and RPTS Road. Now, motorists find no difficulty in driving above the manhole covers.