Goa's roads should not have potholes by November 1: CM

Under fire over poor condition of roads, which are pockmarked with potholes during the monsoons, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday urged Public Work Department officials to ensure that not a single pothole is visible on the state's roads after November 1.

Swant was speaking at a function here to inaugurate a new PWD office building here.

"From November 1, there should be no pothole on Goa's roads," Sawant said.

The Chief Minister also blamed the potholes on excessive rains which occurred during the ongoing monsoon season.

Potholes on Goa's roads have been a recurring theme with social media users in Goa, with videos, songs doing the rounds regularly on Facebook and Twitter.

On Saturday, the Congress, which is the main opposition party in the state, also launched a new campaign to train the spotlight on the poor condition of roads by announcing a "spot the pothole" contest.

"People, who are exasperated by bad road conditions are invited to send photographs of potholes to us on social media. The best photos will be given prizes in form of electronic gadgets which includes smart phones and Bluetooth speakers," Goa Youth Congress president Varad Mardolkar said.

On Friday, Tourism Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar had publicly chastised Chief Minister Pramod Sawant over the poor roads in his assembly constituency of Pernem. Ajgaonkar had said that his back and neck hurt while driving through his constituency due to potholes.

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