A day after a road cave-in near ESIC Hospital disrupted traffic on one of the city’s busiest corridors, the municipal corporation (MC) claimed to have rectified the underlying fault by repairing the damaged underground water pipeline and filling the crater with soil. However, the damaged stretch remains unrepaired, with final restoration now awaiting action by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).Workers repair the road cave in near Bharat Nagar Chowk in Ludhiana on Saturday. (Gurpreet Singh/HT)The temporary arrangement has sparked concerns among residents and commuters, who fear that the soil-filled portion could become unsafe if rainfall occurs before permanent repairs are undertaken. The India Meteorological Department has forecast rain in the coming days, raising apprehensions that the weakened stretch could sink again or pose risks to motorists.MC executive engineer Ekjot Singh said the damaged water pipeline, which was identified as the cause of the cave-in, had been repaired on Friday and water supply to the affected area had been restored. “The corporation’s work has been completed. The road restoration and premix work will now be carried out by NHAI,” he said.Area councillor Ruchi Gulati said the damaged sewer line and water pipeline had been repaired, while the remaining work involved reinstalling two road grates connected to the storm-water drainage system.She said NHAI should ideally allow the soil-filled portion to settle before undertaking reconstruction. “The patch should be allowed to stabilise for around 10 to 15 days, but there should not be any unnecessary delay in restoring the road,” she said.Officials said the cave-in occurred after continuous leakage from an underground water pipeline weakened the soil beneath the road surface. The pipeline was allegedly damaged during cable-laying work carried out in the area earlier. During excavation undertaken to determine the cause of the collapse, a private sewer connection was also damaged.Residents, however, said merely filling the crater with soil had done little to allay fears about the stability of the stretch, particularly with rain forecast in the coming days. They have urged the authorities to expedite permanent repairs to prevent further disruption and ensure commuter safety.