A Civic Startup Is On A Mission To Fix Indian Roads Using Recycled Plastic

We can all agree that the state of some roads in India is quite deplorable, leading to massive halts and affecting the safety of citizens on the road. Founded by Prathap Bhimasena Rao and Sourabh Kumar, a new civic startup — PotholeRaja, is the only initiative of its kind in the country that is working to upgrade India's infrastructure with citizen intervention. Their passion for safe roads led them to come up with a sustainable way to build roads. 

The initiative is not only solving the problem of broken roads and potholes but also finding an alternate way of utilising the excessive plastic waste in the process of mending these roads. Their recently introduced product, ‘GridMats’, are used to construct roads that are eco-friendly, durable, and crafted entirely from 100% recycled plastic waste. They tend to create a permanent, flat, high-quality surface in less than half the time, and at 20%-25% cheaper the cost. 

Recently, a road in Bangalore was reconstructed using over 3000 kg of Gridmats. This was done without using any steel reinforcements which are traditionally used to build concrete roads. These sustainable roads use almost 80% lesser concrete and emit 80% lesser carbon emissions. PotHoleRaja has mended more than 20000+ potholes across cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, Gurugram, Jamshedpur and more. 

They also launched a nationwide campaign titled ‘The Great Indian Pothole Fixing Drive,’ inviting volunteers from across the country to join forces and make a difference in their own communities. The first leg of the campaign was executed on 22nd of April on World Earth Day Bengaluru, where a group of 40 volunteers fixed about 1.5 kilometres of road using PotholeRaja's® cold asphalt technology. Additionally, with an aim to improve the infrastructure of Bengaluru's roads, a new model road project is being funded by private company Radiall and executed by PotHoleRaja in collaboration with Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). 

This model road will have an efficient drainage system that will prevent flooding during monsoons, and utility trenches for cross wiring will be constructed to avoid disruption of any public utility services. Clear and visible road markings, as well as reflectors, will be installed to ensure the safety of drivers and pedestrians. Furthermore, the roads will be made disability-friendly with footpaths that are on the same level and with no breaks in between. In later phases, 24/7 continuous CCTV surveillance will be set up to monitor the security of the model road. 

PotHoleRaja has also partnered with Sarva Shagun to introduce an automated machine that can fix potholes within 15 minutes. Through these measures the independent initiative is solving the problem of potholes and creating safer public infrastructure in India. Backed by technology, they make use of plastic and other eco-friendly methods to preserve the condition of Indian roads, further paving the way for similar initiatives.

You can find more about PotHoleRaja here. 

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