Citizens pay the price for government indifference in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: There is no end to the complaints about the city’s terrible roads. We struggle over potholes, bump on rocky roads, grumble about the disgraceful maintenance by the powers-that-be, then reach home and forget all about it. But when we have to shell out for the bad maintenance of our roads, the issue becomes a lot more serious. 

Maqdoon Ali was driving his bike a year ago on Shampur Main Road. The road’s tar had worn off and sand and potholes were everywhere. 

"I was riding on the road and my bike skidded, because of a pothole after the hump. I was hospitalised and bed-ridden for 4 months. I lost a part of my left leg, and the doctors replaced it with a steel rod. During this time, I was unable to work and lost my job," said Maqdoon, a resident of Muneshwara Nagar.

The aggression of residents living here, grew after this incident and they protested, insisting that these old potholes were covered. Unfortunately, their problems did not end here.

"The roads in this area have no tar. They are made of mud, slush, muck and rocks. Two months ago, the BWSSB dug up the road to place water pipes and left them uncovered. They did not even level them," said Syed Sardar, a resident of Coffee Board Colony.

"We complained to the BWSSB but they said, they did not have the provision to redo their roads. The BBMP said the BWSSB was responsible for this.  One just passes the buck to the other," Mr. Syed added.

The most vulnerable of all the victims remain children and elderly people. "The road condition is miserable. My children can’t even walk to school. Three days ago, the rain made the road worse. Both my sons slipped and hurt themselves. Sometimes, they have to miss school because of the dangerous roads,” said Syed Abdullah.

Residents say the officials do not even pick up their calls. It is safe to say that repeated complaints have gone unanswered, even as a senior citizen slipped and dislocated his shoulder and collar bone, 2 days ago.

The question  citizens ask is, how many more residents have to get injured, or worse, lose their lives for the government to wake up and smell the muck?

BWSSB should restore road after their work: AEE Neelakantaya, Muneshwara Nagar

Why are the roads here in such a bad condition?
BWSSB was supposed to cover the road up after their work, but they claimed they do not have the provision to do that. I even wrote a letter to them, but they did not respond. They are supposed to redo the road as it was before, with either tar or concrete.

If they fail to do, why can’t the BBMP find an alternative?
Why should we do their work? We will lose money. We can't take it into our hands and do it without a tender process. We have to follow the transparency act. Moreover the BWSSB is still not done with their work and are laying pipes in some areas. 

On some roads, the pipe work is done. What about those?
We have sent a report on the road for estimate approval. We started calling for tenders a month ago. We called for them at least four times, but no one came forward for the contract.

What can be done now and how long will it take?
Bengaluru Development Minister K.J. George inspected this area last week. Under his direction, we have started the road work with funds from Nagarottana scheme. The BBMP has agreed to do the road repair this time. For the other roads in the wards, the BWSSB will take responsibility after finishing their work. The current roads will be repaired in 20 days.