BCC To Test Wonder Mix That Sets Potholes In 5 Minutes

Sun or shower, will your spine be safe?
BCC To Test Wonder Mix That Sets Potholes In 5 Minutes On Pilot Basis
Times of India

Bangalore: This could be one technology to end our pothole woes. Chased by media and haunted by angry citizens, the BCC top brass are gearing up to test the product on a pilot basis. If it clicks, it could be a face-saving device for BCC officials and spine-saving one for the aam janata.

What makes this ready-mix labelled IRODR ‘path-breaking’ is, it enables BCC officials to fill potholes even during the rain. BCC engineers are jumping in joy as the wonder-mix takes only five minutes to set after filling a pothole.

IRODR is an aggregate of various grades mixed with special bitumen and admixtures (chemical compounds). “It is more sturdier and its biggest advantage is rapid setting allowing vehicles to ply immediately,’’ says an assistant engineer. In the traditional method, a pothole is first cleaned up and

later filled with a pre-mix jelly bitumen, and takes a day for setting.

“That’s the difficulty,” rues BCC engineer-in-chief Rame Gowda. “How can we restrict traffic anywhere for such a long span? As a result of heavy vehicular m ove - ment alH most immediately, all our efforts are wasted,’’ he says. This year’s rain, going by mayor P.R. Ramesh’s and commissioner K. Jothiramalingam’s outbursts, have been the biggest hindrance in filling up the innumerable potholes plaguing the city. In early September CM Dharam Singh had thundered and set deadlines for all civic a g e n c i e s in the city. L at e r, Jothiramalingam set deadlines followed by the mayor’s famous threat of a-fine-a-pothole. Though many arterial roads benefited from it, the one saving grace of an excuse for not ridding the city of potholes were the perennial rains.

To save something for a rainy day, the BCC also purchased 500 barrels of bitumenous emulsion and used it sparingly. IRODR is being hailed as the next best thing, but here’s the biggest hitch: It is five times more expensive than the conventional material to fill potholes. While the normal one costs Rs 2,500 for a ton, IRODR comes at a steep Rs 12,140.

“We may take it up on a pilot basis,’’ says Rame Gowda.
Fill it. Level it. And, forget it. Sun or shower, we will fill all the holes in city — could be BCC’s next ad mantra. But, will IRODR be another hi-tech plan to fool citizens? Or is it a front-end technology for Bangalore’s noend potholes?

For more on that, watch your step and this space too!