Mumbai: BMC to use ducts to avoid excavating roads

Underground utilities will be encased, reducing the need for trenching in future in the city

To eliminate the need for trenching, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has finalised a policy whereby ducts will be provided for underground utilities while carrying out road repair work. Civic chief I S Chahal approved the policy in the first week of February.

According to the policy, to avoid excavation of concrete roads less than 40 metres wide, a side strip of approximately one metre width shall be cast in a reinforced cement concrete duct and during improvement, all the power and communication utilities shall be shifted to this duct. If the road width is more than 40 metres, at least 1.5-metre-wide side strips are to be ducted.

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The policy marks the first time BMC has decided to make arrangements for sewage and water networks on undeveloped plots. “This will help to reduce the number of trenches in the future,” said a BMC official. The building proposal department will provide a list of each road, mentioning the constructed area on each plot as per full potential to the hydraulic and sewage project department. “These departments can calculate the size of water and sewer connections that need to be provided to these plots,” the official added. This will help to reduce the possibility of trenches.

According to the policy, the list of roads to be concreted and their Google Maps location will be published online and via a public notice so citizens can undertake new connections of water, sewer, and repairs along with the road improvement work. Meanwhile, gas pipes may be allowed to be laid separately by conventional methods without disturbing the RCC ducts. There are 42 types of underground utilities, including gas pipelines, water connections, sewage pipes and electricity, fibre optic and telephone cables.

According to civic data, every year around 400 km of trenches are dug in the city. “The breaking and excavation of stretches damage entire roads and lead to the creation of potholes. These potholes are a sore point for the general public,” said a BMC official.

400 km
Length of trenches dug in city annually

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