Comrades of the armed reserve police (RAP), in Chitradurga fear nothing but rain as their houses in dilapidated condition. The houses may collapse at any time during rainy season.
Years have passed since these houses were repaired, roofs replaced. Once police quarters, now turned makeshifts for the RAP, are very narrow. For the last 20 to 30 years, the brave hearts have managed to live under these suffocating building.
Broken tiles, dilapidated walls, roofless toilets make the total of these buildings. Come June, they can’t live even inside the house, as the water gushes into houses from everywhere, thank to heavy downpour. Adding to their woes is mosquitoes which have sewage water collected here and there as conducive breeding places. Drainage system is unseen here.
‘No guests stay here’
“Usually guests do not come to our house. Even if they come we will send them back at nights as we fear at any point of time the house may collapse. If thunderstorm lashes, our roofs start flying literally and it rains directly into the house. We have always one or the other worries here,” laments Leelavati, a resident of the quarters.
“There is no room for students to concentrate on their studies and we never celebrated marriages or such functions at home,” says Laxmibai, blaming the government for their plight.
Sridhar and Lingaraj say, they covered roofs with tarpaulin to rescue ourselves from rain. For minor repair works, the public works department help us. But for the renovation of the houses we requested Karnataka Police Housing Corporation, but in vain. And a proposal for the same was sent to the State government also. The state of 108 houses is really grave. We have brought this to the notice of senior officials.
District Superintendent of Police B Shivakumar has assured us of repairing the houses availing Rs 50 lakh which will be granted by the government for maintenance of quarters in the district. However the comrades have to wait till the government releases the grant and till the officials listen to their piteous cry.
