Bengaluru: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the city on Tuesday, the lackadaisical BBMP officials are logging extra hours to fill potholes and repair roads, where the PM’s convoy will pass.
Mr Modi is paying a day’s visit to the city to attend an event in Bosch Limited in Adugodi and NASSCOM summit in The Leela Palace.
Though the PM will be in the city only for a few hours, the civic agency officials are spending three days to ensure that the city is clean and free of potholes before his arrival.
Highly placed sources in the BBMP said that ward-level engineers and chief engineers were put to work since Friday morning. Despite Friday being a state government holiday, the officials were directed to work.
The engineers went on an inspection in Shanthinagar constituency. The source, said, “The PM’s convoy will start from Old Airport Road, reach Adugodi and head to Leela Palace via Intermediate Ring Road. A few areas fall under Shanthinagar constituency and the BBMP officials conducted inspection on Friday and Saturday in this constituency. By Sunday evening, works like pothole filling, patch work asphalting and cleaning of roads will be completed.”
Apart from these works, the BBMP officials even conducted an intensive cleaning programme in Koramangala including on the roads where the PM’s convoy will pass.
It can be recalled that intensive cleaning programme which involves removal of garbage, drainage cleaning and maintenance of footpaths, was conceptualized by former BBMP administrator.
T.M Vijay Bhaskar. Though the initial idea was to clean one ward in all the 28 constituencies simultaneously, after his exit, the programme was briefly stalled.
Giving it a head start again, the mayor himself monitored the intensive cleaning works in Koramangala on Saturday.
Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, mayor Manjunath Reddy, said, “When a PM is visiting a city, we have to take up a few emergency works like road repairs and cleaning the roads where the PM’s convoy will pass. The state government has to abide by certain rules. We have put officials to work since Friday morning. Areas like Domlur, Adugodi, Koramangala and Indiranagar will be fully clean and pothole free by Monday morning.”
Ironically, it takes a PM’s visit for BBMP officials to wake up to do their duties!
