Beset with many problems

The never-ending construction work below the KR Puram flyover has unleashed a set of problems. There’s construction debris dumped beside the roads, narrowing the stretch. There are open drains just beside the roads with no indications, rendering the road into a virtual death trap.

There are no pedestrian paths and people are forced to walk on the road and negotiate the oncoming traffic. The pothole-ridden roads only make it difficult for two-wheeler riders to ride on such a stretch with vehicles zooming past them.
After dark, pickpockets are aplenty and women say that they steer clear of going anywhere near KR Puram area.

Metrolife visited the spot and interacted with people and authorities to understand why these problems persist despite claims of things being done.

Officials don’t seem to have a definite solution and seem indifferent to the problems in and around KR Puram. Additional commissioner of police (traffic) B Dayananda
concedes that the traffic situation in KR Puram is beyond repair.

“It’s in a mess and we have to draw up a new plan to ensure smooth flow of traffic. We will have to work with the BBMP to ensure that the potholes are repaired. We have also given the BBMP a list of bus shelters that are an obstruction to the movement of traffic. These will have to be removed,” he says.

 The BBMP commissioner Lakshminarayana confirms that he has received a list of bus shelters in KR Puram that obstruct traffic. “We will get these shelters removed on a priority basis. The ongoing construction work makes it impossible for us to set right the dislodged pedestrian paths but that will be done once the construction is over,” he assures.  

Dr PS Harsha, deputy commissioner of police, east (law and order) says that his people have busted the pickpocketing racket in areas such as Mahadevapura and KR Puram. “These guys get into long-route buses disguised as passengers but we have caught a lot of them. Our beat officers patrol the areas around KR Puram on a regular basis. There is also a proposal to install CCTVs around sensitive areas in the City,” he notes.   

But people who regularly move around KR Puram area have nothing positive to say about the place. Ramesh, a student, says he finds it difficult to get across to the other end of the road.

   “There’s no traffic police to regulate and control the flow of traffic near the KR Puram flyover. You have to cross the road at your own risk,” says Ramesh. Prakash, an advocate, confesses that there are plenty of pickpockets around KR Puram area.

“I have lost Rs 800, my ATM card and a  few other important things in broad daylight. There are no pedestrian paths and we have to walk on the road and the chances of being hit by a speeding vehicle are high,” shares Prakash.
 
Sarika, an electronic analyst, says that she consciously avoids KR Puram area at night. “The potholes make it very difficult to ride on the road. There are drunk men walking on the road after dusk and it is best to avoid this stretch,” she says.

Ratna, a student with PESIT, points out that it’s a nightmare to hang around in KR Puram area when it rains. “The bus shelters sometimes have broken rooftops. There are a lot of shady characters who hang around at the overhead pedestrian bridge and there’s nobody to control traffic when it rains,” Ratna says.