While the Dr Muthuraj Junction underpass finally opened to the Outer Ring Road (ORR) traffic in southern Bengaluru after a gap of three years, it brought little relief to people living in the vicinity.

They feel isolated and cut off as the work on the service road has denied them the vital connection to the roads.

The ordeal began in August 2016, when work to construct the underpass had left the area chaotic and shredded.

Stuck in the messy project, residents accused the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) of poor planning. The method adopted to mark and acquire properties was unscientific, they alleged.

“They later changed the plan and finished the project without acquiring land. We were relieved that the underpass was open, but now, they have taken up some other work on the service road, cutting us off,” said Sheshu Krishna, a resident of Hosakerehalli.

Thanks to the ripped service road, residents have to walk at least half a kilometre to take a bus or to hail an autorickshaw. “We are virtually locked up in our homes. Earlier, only the vehicles couldn’t be brought in, but now we are locked up,” Krishna said.

‘Solution in 10 days’

Engineers working on the service road said they are laying the sewage and drinking water pipes and the work would be completed shortly.

“Rains have delayed the work. We had plans to open the service road with the underpass, but we were not able to do so. The high traffic density on the Outer Ring Road meant we had to open the underpass. We’d permanently fix the (roads) in 10 days,” an engineer at the location told this newspaper.