As citizens were preparing for Rajyotsava Day celebrations on Monday, some workers hired by the BBMP started breaking the pavement in front of Manipal Centre along Dickenson Road.
As citizens were preparing for Rajyotsava Day celebrations on Monday, some workers hired by the BBMP started breaking the pavement in front of Manipal Centre along Dickenson Road.
Since the business centre was closed for the state foundation day, the road-widening exercise did not trigger protest. However, some citizens reacted strongly against the move.
“It comes as a shock to me. So they have started the road-widening work. Our business will be badly hit by the breaking of the footpath in front of Manipal Centre and Tanishq. Why is there no proper planning? If the civic authorities had thought about it, why don’t they finish it part by part,” asked Vidya Virkar, proprietor and owner of Strand Book Stall.
Gauri Tripathi, a commuter who daily gets down at the signal near Manipal Centre and walks up to her office on MG Road, was angry. “As such, it’s awful to walk on the broken end of the road during peak hours. I have tripped many times while walking on this stretch. The present work will add to our woes. If the BBMP wants to widen the road, let them do it in one go. Why have they kept the area dug up for so long,” asked Tripathi.
The digging work had started much before the monsoon for various civil works. The work was then suspended.
The Dickenson Road has broken footpaths all along. At the junction where it meets MG Road, there is footpath only on one side. The other side had been in a complete mess for over four months forcing pedestrians to walk dangerously on the busy road.
“Manipal Centre is a major business centre. As cars and autos are parked in front of the signal, there is little space for buses to take a turn towards MG Road. But road widening is not the solution here. BBMP should build footpaths for pedestrians and maintain them,” said Sumit Roy, a student passing along the stretch.
Businessmen are quite hurt by Monday’s surprise operation. “We are asked to go back by one-and-half metres. BBMP has already given a TDR to our land-owner Tallam Ram Prasad. We cannot do anything when both the parties have agreed to the deal. We have rented the space for our hotel,” said KN Vasudev Adiga of Adiga Hotels chain which has an outlet on Dickenson Road.
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