BENGALURU: Even as State Government and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike official are patting their backs over Bengaluru ranking number one in the Ease of Living Index, many citizens have expressed their apprehensions over it.Bengalureans point that officials must take a look at the city’s roads as most of them are not motorable. Some of them are not even asphalted and some others are blocked. They add that the ones which remain are extremely dusty, only making matters worse for commuters. Residents also point out that the delay in execution of works adds to the misery.
Commuters across the city have raised many complaints with BBMP officials. The BBMP engineers, in most cases, pass the blame to BWSSB and Bescom for delay in execution of work. “Coordination should be the biggest criterion for the rating. If that is considered, the city will not even qualify. For the simple reason being there is no coordination. Avenue Road was dug up and filled after two months. Then the BBMP blamed BWSSB as they were to lay the pipes. Now the roads which have been filled up have been dug open again for underground cables to be laid,” pointed out D Narayan, a shop owner.
The case of Magadi Road is no different. “We have been cut off from the city since 15 days. The BBMP was to do the road works. All the construction materials were dumped on the stretch. Now, when the BBMP agreed to asphalt it, the BWSSB has dug it open to lay pipes. The pipes have been laid, but the open stretches have not been closed. They pose a huge danger at night, because the area has no streetlights also,” said P Acharaya, a resident.
Residents of OMBR Layout have been complaining about bad roads for the last two years. “The 3km road between OMBR Layout and HRBR Layout in Banaswadi has been left untarred. The BBMP officials have no interest in repairing the road even though Rs 2.75 lakh was sanctioned for it,” said Amith Nigli, a resident. Similar is the plight of residents of Vasanthapura, Narayan Nagar, where the road connecting Kanakapura Road and Bannerghatta Road is left untarred for a decade. “Despite officials and politicians visiting the spot, nothing has happened till date,” said Pawan N, a resident.
Bengalureans have also been complaining about the roads around CBD areas being non-motorable and closed in many places. Palike Commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad said in many places, road works are being taken up by BBMP and many other agencies. Directions have been issued to complete all stretches before monsoon so that there are no untoward incidents, he added.