Kothanur now a dust bowl: Motorists having a tough time

BENGALURU: Resident of Kothanur and surrounding areas dread to take the nearby Hennur-Bagalur road as BWSSB has dug up the road to lay pipes. The road is always engulfed in thick blanket of dust and has also become accident prone.

“My daughter was frequently falling sick for the last three months. Although she was getting timely treatment, the infection refused to subside. Later, after multiple visits to the doctor, we realised the exact reason for her recurring dust allergy was the dug up road in front of my shop,” said Manjunath, a vegetable vendor.

His daughter, who used to help him at the shop, was told to stay at home. Her health has improvement and allergies and infections have come down drastically, but Manjunath laments he does not have anybody to help him out at the shop.

The bumpy surface and deep potholes have made the road a nightmare for motorists and accidents are frequent. The dug up stretches become even more dangerous when it rains. The road gets completely choked during peak hours. Though sometimes auto rickshaw drivers and a few volunteers man the traffic, but it remains chaotic most of the time, said L. Vinayak, resident sipping coffee at a nearby shop.

“I have stopped drinking coffee or consuming any eatables due to the dust. However, sometimes, I cannot resist visiting my friend’s shop for coffee. The dust is very dangerous for people with bronchitis and lung-related ailments. The road was dug up for laying water supply pipes. Though it is a welcome step, the project is taking a long time,” Vinayak added.

The BBMP and BWSSB must finish projects in a time-bound manner. Unfortunately, this project has been progressing at snail’s pace putting residents, office goers, shopkeepers, school and college students in great distress, he explained.

A senior BWSSB official said the pipes are being laid as part of supplying water to newly merged villages into the BBMP. Some amount has been deposited with the BBMP for restoration of the work. Once the BWSSB completes the pipe laying work BBMP will restore the road to its earlier condition, the
official assured.