Citizens' victory

The Hennur flyover looked like a derelict structure, incomplete for close to eight years. Road users and citizens said the tall pillars right in the middle of the road had become a hindrance.

But determined to make a difference and ensure taxpayers' money doesn't go waste, a group of people living on Hennur Main Road began to find out why the project was delayed. So, if there's anybody who should take credit for the completion of the flyover, it is a citizen activist group of Hennur and not any politician.

The group calls itself Hennur Taskers. Subramanian K, a member of the group, says he first floated an online petition, seeking speeding up of the flyover. He was overwhelmed to see more than 3,000 people respond in just three days. "It was pouring one night and I was out with my daughter. The space below the Hennur flyover was flooded, making it impossible for people to move either by foot or in their vehicles. It was a helpless situation. I thought I should do something about it but I didn't know the way forward till a friend suggested the idea of an online petition," recalls Subramanian.

He says the online petition started gaining momentum soon.

"The enthusiasm was overwhelming. We met as a group for the first time on October 21 last year and started a door-to-door campaign, requesting people to join the protest," says Subramanian.

The group realised citizens they approached already knew about the problem. "We formed groups on Facebook and WhatsApp to spread the word," he says.

Members of the group hold regular jobs but they made time to follow the progress of the project. "We had at least 25 meetings and met officials of the BDA and other civic agencies seven or eight times before we got a response. It wasn't easy but we kept at it. The idea was to keep the pressure on," says Subramanian.

This is citizen activism at its best, says Nadia Zackria, another member of the group.

"We wanted it to be a people's movement and a silent protest with no political colour or flavour," says Nadia. She attributes civic problems such as the one in Hennur to shoddy planning. "The authorities have no respect for deadlines," she says. The group held its first protest on October 29, 2017, and the protesters (almost 500 who turned up on a Sunday morning) were assured the flyover would be completed by January 17, 2018.

But the deadline was missed again. The residents used to call the space below the unfinished Hennur Flyover a 'pit of death'.

"People were falling sick because of dust on the road and bikers were skidding and falling whenever it rained," recalls Hemanth Kumar.

Liz John, another member pitches in, "We remember our commutes took longer when the flyover was under construction."

Not that people are entirely happy now. Many are sceptical the hurriedly opened flyover may not be up to the mark.

"They wonder whether the flyover is strong enough. I still see people working on it. They skipped the deadline and then inaugurated it just in time for the elections," observes Nadia.

Assembly elections are due in Karnataka in late April or early May.

Hennur Taskers wishes to take up more problems affecting the locality.

"I think citizens must take to the streets to reclaim the spaces that rightly belong to them and for this citizen activism is the only way forward," Subramanian signs off.

Long struggle

Work on the Hennur flyover began in 2010.  It missed 15 deadlines,  including the latest, January  17. It was formally inaugurated on March 4,  but some work remains to be done.