BENGALURU: With no solution in sight for a motorable road in their BDA layout, residents of Arkavathy Layout 19th Block, are filling the potholes and other sunken portions of the muddy roads with bricks and jelly stones so that vehicles can be taken out of their homes.
There are 600 sites in the Chellakere village of Arkavathy Layout, and houses have been built on two-thirds of the sites.
Patilgouda Karadal, an office-bearer of Arkavathy Layout 19th Block Residents Association, told TNIE, “To ensure that roads can be used, residents have filled up potholes and openings on the road with big stones and bricks for bigger roads, and used jelly stones to cover smaller cross roads and potholes. We are doing this just to take our vehicles out of our layout.”
The roads within the layout as well as those connecting it to the two main roads at Challakere Main Road and Babusapalaya are not tarred, he explained. “The wheels of vehicles get stuck badly in the muddy roads during heavy rain and we had a tough time extricating them.”
Giving the background, he said a temporary tar road was laid by the BDA in June 2023. “We were told the BWSSB would come later to dig them, and lay water and sanitary pipelines and hence it was just a temporary one. For four months, we used the road in peace. Then, by September 2023, the BWSSB dug it up and laid the pipelines and left. When we ask them to set it right, we were told to approach the BDA only.”
Multiple visits have been made to the Authority’s head office, to no avail, he explained.
Another site owner Gopinath said that he was yet to build his house in the site he has been allotted. “The owners who are already residing there, are facing a nightmare. We buy BDA sites as the documents are genuine and litigation-free. But we never expected to find ourselves in a situation like this,” he said. “We have no clue whom to approach and how to get a road in our area. We have tried all options,” he added.
Residents also said that KR Puram MLA Byrathi Basavaraju had assured them the issue would be addressed, but it remained an empty assurance, they allege.