The dusty, potholed and dimly lit stretch that links Mysore Road with the administrative block of Bangalore University is a pain to motorists and poses health and safety risk to pedestrians.
The dusty, potholed and dimly lit stretch that links Mysore Road with the administrative block of Bangalore University is a pain to motorists and poses health and safety risk to pedestrians.
Although university officials hope repair work would start soon, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) officials, who are supposed to maintain roads, say financial hiccups are bound to delay the work. So students will have to eat more dust and suffer more spinal pain.
“The road needs to be repaired urgently. I take this road every day as it cuts my travel time. But due to the bad condition of the roads, I am forced to spend more time on travel. My vehicle has also suffered frequent breakdowns,” says Mohan Kumar, a commuter.
For Sujatha, another commuter, the condition is worst at night. There are no streetlights over wide stretches and this poses a danger to pedestrians, especially women. She says anti-social elements wait in the dark to prey on lone pedestrians.
More streetlights have to be provided on the road to make it safe for pedestrians and motorists at night.
Students say the dust kicked up by passing vehicles is posing a health risk. “Dust is indeed a matter of concern. Earlier, the pollution level in the university campus was under control. But now, due to the bad condition of the road, it is rising dangerously,” says Sujatha.
Bangalore University vice-chancellor Prabhu Dev says a proposal has been made to improve the roads and it has been handed over to the BBMP. Several meetings in this regard have also been held with the Palike and the works committee.
“The BBMP commissioner, during his inspection, had assured us that the road would be repaired. But things are yet to shape up. The project is proposed to cost Rs13 crore and we hope the repair works would start before the monsoon,” says Dev.
“The road was patched up two years ago. Since then, its condition has become bad due to rains and heavy duty vehicles using the stretch. BWSSB workers contributed their own by digging it up to lay pipelines. We have received several complaints from students. So efforts are under way to improve it,” he adds.
But the BBMP officials have a different story to tell. According to chief engineer (major roads) KT Nagaraj, the road repair proposal has been drawn at Rs11.5 crore. Of this, the university has to pay Rs1 crore and also undertake quality tests for the road as it runs through their campus.
“The project has been delayed as the university has been unable to hand over the money to us. Furthermore, the project has to be approved by the council and the government. So it is unlikely that the road will be repaired this year. However, we will undertake other civil works such as widening the road, laying cycle tracks,
drain works and footpaths,” Nagaraj says.
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