Bengaluru: A day before resumption of pothole case in Karnataka high court, Bengaluru Mahanagar Palike (BBMP) has claimed that it is yet to fill 628 gaps on road within the city limits. The court had given three weeks time to the civic body to ensure that Bengaluru is pothole-free, but mahanagar palike is set to miss another deadline.

"The court had instructed us to fill all potholes during the Dusshera break, but we still have 628 potholes, where work is on-going. We are trying our best to fill the potholes in a scientific manner," said Bengaluru city mayor Gangambike Mallikarjun.

A month ago, the Karnataka high court had pulled up the civic agency asking them to fill all potholes in the city within 24 hours, the BBMP had then asked for several extensions. This, then, forced the court to set up a two-member court commission to inspect the pothole related works being carried out by BBMP.

The court commissioners inspected wards in Yelahanka, Malleshwaram and Mahalakshmi Layout on September 24 and 25. According to their findings, many potholes were covered up with only mud, while others had protruding surfaces, making the roads uneven.

One of the reasons for the delay in filling the potholes was the sudden rains the city witnessed in the past few weeks. Festive season and long weekends is another excuse why the BBMP couldn't complete the work.

According to the BBMP daily report on potholes, as of October 21, the east zone alone had identified 156 new potholes. This comes as a surprise, as just a week ago, reports emerged that BBMP claimed that east zone was pothole-free.

"We have given up hope of Bengaluru ever becoming pothole-free. We see works being done but within days new potholes emerge," said a motorist near Shantinagar Bus depot.