What is considered as one of the most preferred residential localities in the city, the National Games Village (NGV) complex in Koramangala is also known for it’s parks and peaceful ambience. But, the footpaths in the complex which is used by hundreds of pedestrians on a daily basis tells you a different story.
One of the residents, Lokesh says, “It’s a nice locality. But, the major grievance is the condition of the footpaths at certain stretches. As soon as you enter, you can find construction material piled up on the space meant for pedestrians. To add to our woes, the slabs are also broken.”
What makes the issue worse is that hundreds of people use these footpaths as a walking track and the bad condition of footpaths compels them to go on to the road. Parents are a worried lot too, as they are scared to let their kids go out of the residential blocks in the complex. Kumuda Shetty, a homemaker says,”I never let my children step on to the road. If one of them hurts themselves owing to the bad state of the footpath, who will be held accountable?”
Complaining about the broken and missing slabs on footpath, college student Sheetal H, says, “I use this road everyday and it’s scary to walk on the footpath especially during the night because chances are you will trip over a broken slab and end up hurting yourself. So, I feel it’s safer to use the road.”
Ejipura ward corporator Saroja Veerappa was not available for comments. MLA Ramalinga Reddy under who’s constituency NGV falls said that extra tractors have been allocated to clear the construction debris. He added,”We have informed the respective engineers about the condition of footpaths. We keep telling them to look into the matter. Unfortunately, no contractors came forward to carry out the repair work as their previous bills were not cleared by the BBMP. But in the upcoming budget, we will have a special grant for the footpath and I will ensure the issues relating to footpaths are resolved.”