BENGALURU: In the past 10 days, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) received 1,376 complaints on its app pertaining to potholes in its limits. As on August 14, the number of complaints to be addressed stood at 964, according to sources.
“Last year, the Palike officials stated that there were 26,000 potholes. The high court too intervened and directed the palike to act swiftly. But now when the condition of Bengaluru’s roads is pathetic, the palike says it has received only 1,376 complaints related to potholes. It is unbelievable,” said an expert working closely with the palike.
The expert said that in the absence of councillors, the palike officials are accountable to the people. In places such as Bannerghatta Road, Magadi Road, Sarjapura, Bellandur or Mahadevapura, roads are in a pathetic condition. People are forced to navigate through potholes and craters to reach their destinations, risking their lives.
Recently, even Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar expressed concern over potholes on the city’s roads. Yet, the palike did nothing.
BBMP Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath said that in the past 10 days, the palike received 1,376 complaints and efforts are on to address them. So far, 30% of the complaints have been resolved. He admitted that the number of complaints increased in the past three days.Meanwhile, BBMP engineers said they received 890 complaints last week. “We rejected 130 complaints as they were not related to potholes but roads dug up by various utility agencies. Such damaged roads should be asphalted by the utility agencies concerned. Also, 15 complaints have been kept aside as the entire stretches have to be asphalted,” they said.
Srinivas Alavilli, civic activist, said people should come forward and register complaints related to potholes and bad roads on BBMP’s app or dial 1533. They should inform the palike. Fixing potholes is not a solution and they cannot be counted. The palike should give priority to road maintenance work.
Another activist said the palike should track potholes at the ward-level and data should be made available in public domain. It is unfortunate that all officials of the department concerned in the BBMP are unable to access this data.