The Bombay High Court (HC) on Monday, June 29, criticised the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) over the poor condition of Mumbai's roads. The court said that despite repeated directions over the last 20 years, people continue to face potholes and uneven roads every monsoon. It said the civic body has to find a permanent solution instead of giving a new explanation every year.
A bench of Justices Ajay Gadkari and Kamal Khata said it was time for the BMC to "wake up". Justice Kamal Khata said that a person travelling from Dahisar to Fort has to go through hundreds of bumps. Referring to directions passed by former Chief Justice R.M. Lodha in 2006, Justice Khata said that the situation had not improved even in 2026. He asked why the BMC continued to return to court every year with different reasons instead of solving the problem.
The judges also pointed to roads in several major cities around the world. They said those roads are scientifically designed and allow smooth travel even at high speeds. They urged the civic body to study such roads and improve Mumbai's road network.
The court also talked about manhole safety. It noted that protective grills had still not been installed beneath more than 3,000 manhole covers. Justice Gadkari told the BMC to simply assure the court that no human life would be lost because of open manholes.
As per BMC, protective grills have already been installed beneath more than 70,000 manholes. Work on the remaining 3,000-plus manholes is still in progress. The civic body also informed the court that roads are inspected every month and officials are taking necessary steps to repair defects.
The Bench questioned why inspections were being carried out only once every month. The judges asked why the checks were not being conducted continuously.
The judges also referred to a viral video that appeared to show a BMC officer falling into an open manhole during Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde's inspection. The High Court also asked whether the BMC's complaint application for potholes and open manholes was working properly. The court further directed the BMC to submit details of FIRs registered in cases involving the theft of manhole covers.
The civic body said it would submit a fresh affidavit explaining how the application functions. It also agreed to provide photographs showing complaints that had been attended to and resolved.
The High Court also criticised the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) over a delay in paying compensation of INR 6 lakh to the family of a doctor who died after falling into a manhole last year. Justice Gadkari questioned whether the Municipal Commissioner could not spare even 20 minutes to approve the compensation. He directed the civic body to inform the court by next Monday that the payment had been made.
The TMC informed the court that 1,351 cases of open or damaged manholes had been reported, and all had been attended to by June 23. It also said it had received 133 complaints about damaged or open manholes over the past year. According to the civic body, every complaint was resolved in 24 hours.
The contempt petition was filed in 2019 by advocate Ruju Thakkar. It alleges systemic failures by civic bodies, government agencies and contractors responsible for maintaining roads across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The proceedings started in a suo motu public interest litigation by the Bombay High Court in 2013.
The petition alleges that the High Court's earlier directions to tackle potholes and poor roads have not been implemented. The matter has been posted for further hearing on July 6.