Bangalore: Inspector mayor interrogated

During his whirlwind inspection of railway projects in the city on Wednesday, mayor BS Satyanarayana got an earful from city dwellers, who were aggrieved over inordinate delay in completion of civic projects.

Jakkur residents were miffed over the pathetic condition of a road that was dug up two years ago. They also vented their ire over non-completion of a railway overbridge at a level crossing.

“What made the BBMP award the work to a contractor even before the completion of land acquisition! It looks like making a guest wait at the dining table before the food is cooked. The BBMP authorities did not even bother to consult the residents, whose properties are to be acquired for the construction of the overbridge,’’ said Nagesh M, a resident.

The residents said that with the closure of the railway level crossing, they are compelled to travel an additional five km to reach Yelahanka. While the closure of the railway level cross has come as a blessing in disguise for autorickshaw drivers, residents of the area have had a harrowing time for the past three years.

“With no one to regulate, autorickshaw drivers are ever ready to exploit passengers by demanding extra money,’’ said S Devaraju, another resident.

Road of woes
A portion of Yelahanka Road between the railway level crossing and Jakkur, where the construction work is in progress, is posing many problem to the residents. The situation gets worse when it rains as the road becomes slushy. It is no better even otherwise, as the road tends to rake up dust. According to the residents, the BBMP authorities assigned a contractor to dig up the road about two years ago for asphalting it. However, the authorities have failed to do it till date, they said.

“The road was in good condition earlier. No one requested the BBMP to asphalt it. The contractor dug up the road and forgot about it. The BBMP authorities also continued to ignore our plight. We even staged dharnas to draw the attention of the authorities concerned, but in vain. In addition, the clogged drains have turned into breeding grounds for mosquitoes and rodents,’’ complained Sumithra R, another resident.

Owing to the bad condition of the road, school buses have stopped plying on it, adding to the plight of student and parents.

“With the closure of the railway level cross, school buses stop at Jakkur junction itself. We have to walk more than half a kilometre from our homes,’’ said Rathnamma, a home-maker.

The residents also complained that neither the deputy mayor Indira, who represents Byatarayanapura ward, nor Muneendra Kumar KA representing Jakkur ward, has taken the onus to asphalt the road as it lies on the border of both the wards.

Mayor’s take
After hearing the grievances of the residents, it was the turn of the mayor to take the BWSSB engineer to the task. “It is not fair on your part to cause inconvenience to the residents. It is your duty to take up the restoration work after laying the underground drainage pipes. Will you cope with inconvenience if someone dumps two truck loads of mud in front of your house!” the mayor asked BWSSB engineer Amruthesh M.

Takes stock of railway projects
Earlier in the day, the mayor appreciated the railway authorities for the progress of a railway underbridge near Judicial Layout. He has also advised the railway authorities to speed up the work on the railway overbridge at Allalasandra. The railway authorities told the mayor that 5% of the work on the overbridge was completed during the past two months.

“The construction work on the Rs22-crore railway overbridge is expected to be completed in eight months. We are waiting for the traffic police to divert the traffic from this road,’’ said a railway official.

Request for underpass 
Later, the mayor visited Byappanahalli railway level crossing, where the construction of a railway overbridge is in progress. He requested the MEG & Centre officials to hand over the land required for the project.

The mayor also visited Byappanahalli Junction on Old Madras Road. MLA S Raghu requested the mayor to sanction an underpass or flyover to ease the flow of traffic on Old Madras Road.

“We will discuss it in the BBMP council meeting,’’ the mayor said. According to him, the BBMP had submitted proposals for 44 railway overbridges/underbridges to facilitate smooth movement of vehicles in the city.

“Among them, 14 projects are in progress. The BBMP had already deposited Rs40 crore for this purpose,’’ he said.