DHARWAD: One would think of parties and outings on birthdays. But here is a businessman in Dharwad, who did something different on his mother’s birthday. He took up repainting of boards, which were in dilapidated condition for many years, in his locality.
The residents of Gandhinagar in Dharwad were facing problems in giving addresses of their houses as the sign boards were in bad condition. Despite many requests to repair the boards, the Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation did nothing. That’s when Shivaji Suryavanshi, a local businessman, came up with a unique idea of painting the boards as a birthday gift to his mother.
“Ours is a thickly populated area and many times, courier agents find it difficult to trace the shops or houses due to poor signboards. Hence, my brother and I have decided to do something for the society on the occasion of the birthday of our mother Girija, who turned 59 last week. Other residents too joined hands in cleaning the boards and painting, though we had called painters for the job,” Suravanshi said.
About 25 boards in Gandhinagar have been repainted in the last one week.
The new addition to the board is that there is a mention of the nearest landmark of the area. Arjun Valknavar, a resident of Gandhinagar, said, “We were surprised to see painters working around the signboards. When inquired, we got to know that it’s not the job of the HDMC,” he said. “We have spent D7,000 to procure paints and make payment to the painters. The residents also came forward to clean the boards,” he added.
An official of the HDMC said: “Every year, funds are released to maintain the sign boards. However in some areas, the boards are not visible or readable. Many times the boards are damaged soon after installation and replacing them takes time.”