Defunct Palike offices across city turn public nuisance

BBMP offices and centres, which were set up for the welfare of the public, have become a nuisance at several places.

A few structures have been shut down and turned into dump yards and some stand neglected despite citizens trying to make them functional.

Take the case of the BBMP health office and Palike contact point on 1st cross, Cambridge Road, Ulsoor. Both are in a dilapidated state. According to local residents, the contact point has now turned into a public urinal and a hub of illegal activities during night. The health office, on the other hand, has not been functioning for years.

“BBMP officers visit the contact point every day. Yet, no action has been taken. The premises of the contact point are filled with liquor bottles, garbage and even human faeces. There is a BBMP ward office adjacent to the health office and that is operational for 30 minutes only, every day. A vacant ground belonging to BBMP at the same spot has turned into a public urinal,” said an aggrieved resident.

At HRBR Layout, 2nd block, a similar tale unfolds. A BBMP dry waste collection centre (DWCC) started three years ago with much gusto has turned into a godown. “The DWCC was operated only for six months. Our complaints and memoranda have evoked poor response,” said Jude Rajesh Ferrao, president of the Citizens’ Welfare Association.

The same story repeats at a BBMP health office near Shivajinagar bus terminal. It has remained closed for years. The local residents said that the place had turned into a dump yard, leading to health issues among residents and vendors in the vicinity.

Mohammed Shariff, a resident, said the office has been closed for more than five years now and none of the Palike officials has bothered to inspect it. Meanwhile, residents of Cambridge Road have called for the demolition of defunct structures, expansion of the park and construction of urinals on Jogupalya Main Road and near Hopcoms.

BBMP commissioner

N Manjunatha Prasad told DH that the ward officers were entrusted with the responsibility of maintaining the Palike offices and taking care of the structures. He said that he would look into the issue of defunct Palike offices at the earliest.