For BMC, hot mix is three times ‘cooler’ than cold mix

Two months into the monsoon, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) home-grown concoction for potholes, lies cold in its Worli asphalt plant. The civic body apparently prefers the same old hot mix three times over its new homemade technology.

Cold mix was a formula, which the corporation had proudly claimed, could be used even when the pothole was wet and dried quicker, while the hot mix could only be used to fill dry potholes. This is the first year the BMC started using its inhouse cold mix, having purchased the concoction from Austria in previous years.

As per the civic report, the BMC used 392.04 tonnes of hot mix a month during the monsoon, compared to 102.85 tonnes of cold mix. The civic body, however, used 148.5 tonnes of cold mix in July.

Ironically, the BMC didn’t use hot mix during the dry spell in the city between July 21 and 30. The report also revealed the Worli plant has manufactured 400 tonnes of cold mix until now, at a cost of Rs 28 per kilogram, excluding transportation. The concoction was distributed to all 24 wards, so that it could be at hand to repair potholes in an emergency.

Meanwhile, the BMC report also claims that the number of potholes have gone down drastically in the past few years. The corporation reportedly has received 1,642 potholes complaints, of which 1,497 were addressed.

The civic body has also proposed to build a shed to keep raw materials dry, the cost of which is Rs 2.13 crore. Of the total cold mix produced, the bridges department used only 0.05 tonnes, while the Public Works Department utilised five tonnes.