BENGALURU: With Bengalureans flaying the BBMP and the state government for its inaction over encroachment on rajakaluves and culverts that led to flooding, residents and commuters are now enraged over blocking of footpaths and bicycle lanes either by parked vehicles or hawkers, compelling them to walk on the roads amid traffic.
Sathya Sankaran, bicycle mayor of Bengaluru and founder, Council for Active Mobility called the footpaths and bicycle lanes are in the lower rung of the mobility pyramid, adding that walking and cycling are not considered important by the government.
On the Outer Ring Road (ORR), although there are encroachments in several areas, there is little action to address the situation.
The cycle lanes lack connectivity and the footpath's infrastructure is substandard, he said, adding that if they are properly segregated, it will only help in making traffic move faster, which officials have failed to understand.
Shivkumar V Naidu, a social activist from Domlur, said that people are neither bothered about parking properly nor do they fear penalties.
For parking on footpaths, Rs 1,000 fine is levied, and for wrong parking, Rs 500, said V Harish, traffic police inspector, adding that footpaths are often encroached by hawkers who end up fixing putting their shop there.
They cannot be removed by traffic police which should be done by BBMP, he said. But a temporary solution is the hawkers should be given a separate area for their shops, he added.
BS Prahalad, Chief Engineer (Road and Infrastructure), BBMP, said that they had been carrying out many awareness programmes to ensure that people do not park on footpaths, but there has been no change.
No place to walk
A resident of Whitefield area said the condition of footpaths is so poor that a bus fell into an uncovered drain while taking a turn. For elderly people or those who are specially-abled, it is difficult to take the footpath since it is elevated, not connected well, and vehicles are parked there, she said. A bookshop owner on Kempegowda Road complained that he had incurred losses in business due to footpath work which took over six months.
500 edu kits given to kids in flood-hit slum areas
Following heavy rain that flooded many houses, relief efforts are underway to mitigate the plight of sanitation, domestic workers, labourers, and others. The All India Central Council of Trade Unions and All India Students’ Association raised `3 lakhs for ration, education kits for the children in their families, especially in Munekolalu, BEML Layout, Mahadevapura, Kanakanagar, among others.
“Over 500 education kits comprising a school bag, notebooks, pens, pencils, and a sketch-pen set were distributed among the children. AISA will also distribute textbooks by the education department soon,” a joint statement read. Heavy flooding saw water reaching shoulder-high, entering slums, and damaging homes of the workers.