P Ramdas By

Express News Service

KOCHI: "I bow my head in shame and I apologise on behalf of the system to the family of the young boy who was crushed to death after he fell from his motorcycle while trying to evade a deep pothole on the road," said Justice Devan Ramachandran while considering a petition seeking to maintain potholed roads in city.

Justice Ramachandran's unprecedented statement came a day after a 23-year-old was run over by lorry in the city after he fell off the motorcycle after his bike's handle hit an iron board placed over a pothole. Though the court had issued repeated orders to repair the roads, nothing happened. The unfortunate incident occurred when the petition was pending before the court. So the court apologises to the bereaved family, the judge said. "The court lost faith in the system. How many more people should die to tackle the menace?" the court asked the government.

The only hope for the ailing mother and the father has been lost. He is the sole breadwinner of the family. He was also working to augment the income of the family. The government said that the Ernakulam District Collector has ordered an inquiry in the incident and the government is trying to avoid this kind of incident in the future.

The officer in charge of the road should be on the road not in the AC rooms. The court also said that everybody visiting abroad and watching their development. But no such development here.

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The Advocate General also informed the court that the government has decided to give Rs 10 lakhs to the family of the deceased. Then the court asked how many times the government will pay Rs 10 lakhs to the public.

The court made it clear that if this kind of incident happened again, the officer concerned should be held responsible. The court said that the government should treat the citizen as its own. Officers who were travelling in the air-conditioned car should now the plight of pedestrians and motorists.

"It's painful," observed the court and added that the irresponsibilities shown by the system caused the death of a young man. The court won't permit a repeat of the incident which happened in Palarivattom. The court also appointed three advocates- S Krishna, P Deepak and Vinod Bhat as amicus curiae to assist the court in the case. The court directed them to visit the various roads in the city and file the appropriate report. The court posted the case on December 20.