Bangalore’s deputy mayor blamed for fall in status

For CV Raman Nagar, it was indeed a humiliating fall from the 6th to 17th position in the list of Bangalore’s best localities. This, despite the presence of the city’s youngest-ever deputy mayor, N Dayanand.

When their reactions were sought on the DNA-AZ survey rating, not many in the 26 apartment associations came to the defence of their locality. Instead, they denounced the BBMP and Dayanand.

“He (Dayanand) has no time for his own ward as he is probably tied up with his deputy mayoral duties,” was the caustic remark of social activist ML Anupama.

And the apartment associations are unanimous that the survey had, if anything, overrated the locality, going by the mounting problems this area faces.

“To begin with,” says TR Krishnan, president of Mohan Enclave Apartment Owners Association, “Raman Nagar’s narrow roads are potential traps. In case of an emergency, a fire engine or ambulance can’t reach the victim. Still, unlawful constructions go on. Whom to blame since every government, be it at the Centre, in the state or in the BBMP, is bathed in scams,” asks Krishnan.

“We (Raman Nagar) have set a record,” says Vijay Menon, president of Harsha Pride Owners Association, sardonically.

“In the past five years, we got Cauvery water only two days! The list of woes of CVRN is pretty long: narrow roads, irregular garbage clearance, inadequate water supply, traffic congestion and lawless parking, encroachment and the stink the once splendorous Kaggadaspura Lake emits due to merciless diversion of sewage water, lack of parks, playgrounds and community facility… No, the deputy mayor has not covered himself with glory,” says Menon.

“Honestly, I believe CV Raman Nagar is projected as a posh locality because of the presence of DRDO and Bagmane Park nearby,” says Anupama Reddy. “Or else, this locality could not be ranked even the last the way things are going. Problems like narrow roads, congestion, indiscriminate building, and dragging metro work add to our burden and there is no improvement in sight.”

The least anybody could have done for this once good locality, says a provision store owner of 6th Cross, is to stop polluting Kaggadaspura. “We also need public space which we don’t have now. Some say people are not giving land for development but what were they doing all these years,” he asks.

This locality named after a noble son of India needs a champion, residents say. And the champion they thought they had elected has not proved himself. Efforts to reach out to Dayanand proved futile as he was said to be too tied up with the ongoing grassroot elections.