JOIN USRain cheers farmers, upsets motorists
Rain has brought cheers to farmers on the outskirts of the town, but woes to residents of the city.
It gave a respite from the sizzling sun and revived farmers’ hopes of reaping a bumper yield. But, in the city, the rainwater submerged the pothole-ridden roads, causing a nightmarish experience to motorists and pedestrians.
The shandy street, district stadium road, some stretches at Vapasandra and near the new bus stand are just a few places where people fear treading down the streets.
“The roads are all covered in slush which splashes all over us when a vehicle zooms past.
We can manage with a little effort to walk on such streets. But, using a two-wheeler can prove dangerous as it can easily topple if it encounters potholes,” allege pedestrians.
“After years of such suffering, we still see that complaining to officers concerned is futile. They do nothing but pass the buck. There is hardly any one who will even bother to listen to our problems, let alone solve them,” they said, expressing concern over the backward state of the district headquarters.
Venkatesh, a small shop owner, told Deccan Herald that the road between connecting BB Road and the district stadium has been in a bad shape for years.
Crushed stones are used to fill the potholes in a hurry on the occasion of national festivals such as Independence Day, Republic Day and Karnataka Rajyotsava, since ministers, legislators and other dignitaries travel on these roads. “The very next day, things are all back to square one,” he complained.
“When we complained to the deputy commissioner on the lack of facilities and poor condition of the roads, she gave an evasive answer and held the City Municipality responsible.
If we complain to the legislators, they only criticise the inefficiency of the Municipal Council, but do nothing to address the issues. The elected representatives and officers at the municipality have no to time to heed our woes and none of them are keen on initiating steps to set right the problems,” said Venkatesh.
‘Go beyond Municipality’
Rangaswamy, a senior citizen, said it would be injustice to blame the municipality for all problems.“Solving all civic problems might be the responsibility of the municipality, but the higher authorities like the district administration and other elected representatives are taking no action against the inefficiency of the members and officers in the City Municipal Council,” he said and advised to complain to senior officers at the government level against the Municipal members and officers instead of just indulging in criticism.
“Why don’t we keep track of the projects and activities of the Municipality and ensure they go in the right direction?” he suggested.