Residents left with no way out of homes as BBMP delays works on shoulder drains

The Telecom Layout residents have been facing a tough time even to exit their homes for the past four months now, thanks to snail-paced work by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).

The civic body has undertaken the reconstruction of shoulder-drain at the Hosahalli ward in Vijayanagar. The work includes removal of silt, widening and reconstruction of the shoulder drain.

However, it also involves the removal of the existing slabs that connect the footpath and the houses. It has left wide gaps for residents to scale, irking several residents since the work is going on for more than four months now.

Ankita Sharma (name changed) is a resident of the 11th main road in Telecom Layout. She is in her late 40s and uses her two-wheeler to go to work. All slabs except one near the gate in front of her house have been removed.

A month ago, on returning from work, she tried to ride her two-wheeler inside her house to park, balancing on a lone slab. But she fell into the drain with her two-wheeler. "Although nothing happened to me, I was so scared when it happened. I fell because there was no space to keep my feet for balance and it was also dark. My husband is parking the vehicle since then," she said.

This is not all. The residents also claim that a labourer lost his life due to this work. "About three months ago, a labourer hailing from West Bengal fell into the drain and lost his life when the iron rods pierced near his neck," said K L Jayasimha Rao, another resident. He also said that it is difficult to walk in and out of the doors.

The civic body has not responded despite the mishaps.

Shivanna, assistant engineer, BBMP said,"The work is almost complete and we will complete the remaining task in ten days."

However, the area corporator and the chief engineer of roadworks seem to be unaware of the situation. Both Mahalakshmi R, area corporator and BS Prahallad, chief engineer, TVCC said that they will check it and get back.

Similar work is said to have started in Sanjay Nagar.