Mahabaleshwar repairs roads ahead of Diwali tourist rush; mayor inspects work

Mahabaleshwar is expected to see a large rush of tourists during the Diwali season. With this in mind, the municipal council has begun road repair and beautification work in the town on a war footing. The council says the town is now completely free of potholes and the roads are being readied to welcome tourists.

Heavy rain fell in the Mahabaleshwar area this monsoon, leaving the town's main and internal roads in poor condition. In some areas roads had been washed away, while large potholes had formed at several places on the main routes. This raised the possibility of an adverse effect on tourism and local traffic. To spare tourists inconvenience and keep Mahabaleshwar's tourism from taking a hit, Mayor Sunil Shinde held an urgent meeting and decided to repair roads across the town.

In the drive, special priority was given to work on Mahatma Gandhi Road, the town's main commercial hub. The road was earlier half cement and half asphalt. The council has now decided to make it entirely cement concrete. After detailed discussions with contractor Neeraj Agvekar, work began on the ground immediately. Along with the road, work to install pre-cast concrete gutters on the same stretch, so that rainwater drains properly, has also begun on a war footing.

Mayor Sunil Shinde and fellow councillors recently inspected the development works and road repairs under way in the town. Councillors Adv. Sanjay Jangam, Afzal Sutar and Ashok Shinde, and Chief Officer Yogesh Patil were prominently present with the mayor. During the inspection, Patil briefed the mayor in detail on the town's roads, gutters and other works in progress.

During the inspection, Shinde gave the contractors and officials a stern warning. "No compromise on the quality of road work will be tolerated. All these works must be completed to a very high standard and on time, before the Diwali tourist season begins," he instructed them strictly.

Shinde does not sit in a closed office but goes out into the field every day to inspect works, points out shortcomings and gets work completed through prompt instructions. Local residents, traders and tourism operators in Mahabaleshwar are satisfied with this swift work by the elected representatives and the administration, and are praising the mayor, the councillors and the council's entire team.