Voices from different areas

Devarabisanahalli

Lack of streetlights in Devarabisanahalli, Outer Ring Road, caused a 28-year-old Amita Gupta to suffer multiple fractures on her face. She also lost several teeth. Gupta was returning home from work at night when a speeding truck hit her. Luckily her injuries were not life-threatening. But it is enough to prove that the stretch between Devarabisanahalli and Eco Space is an accident-prone zone. 

Due to dearth of streetlights in the area, the only help available is from the headlights of the passing cars. “There are times when I have to walk back from work in absolute darkness as even the lights on the nearby flyovers are mostly non-functional,” rues Pratyusha Cherukumili, a software engineer from Eco Space. The residents here have been complaining about the lack of proper lighting, safety being their main concern. Veena Namala, a resident says, “I feel unsafe when returning home from work as there are often labourers and other strangers in the area and there are no street lights here.”

Silk Board Junction

The intersection at Silk Board is one of the busiest junctions in the city and yet the floodlight, the major source of light there, often does not work, plunging the whole area in darkness. With very few functional streetlights, this area has a great potential for accidents. Suhasini Mitra, a PR executive who travels daily via Silk Board junction says, “The area is very poorly lit so I avoid walking across this junction. 

Apart from the speeding cars I am also worried about my personal safety as a friend of mine was molested here.” Women’s safety is a major concern in this area as there have been several instances of women being harassed under the cover of darkness. Ashwini M, a customer support executive, was nearly pulled into an auto by a man, while she was walking back home from the Silk Board junction. It was 7 pm. Although she managed to escape, she could not see the face of her assaulter due to lack of streetlights.

Road to Adugodi

A few kilometres from Silk Board, the stretch between Adugodi and Forum does not even have light poles installed, making it dangerous and unsafe for women, pedestrians and motorists at the same time. Ujwal Rajamanindra, a content manager who frequently uses the route says, "We expect a busy road cutting across a cosmopolitan place like Koramangala to be well lit at night but we have to depend on the light from oncoming traffic to provide visibility.”

Mayo Hall 

Streetlights often fail to pierce through trees in the dark and the very purpose is defeated. "Streetlights here only for namesake, they serve no purpose. I usually board a bus late in the night after 10 pm from the Mayo Hall bus stop here. More often than not, they do not work and even if they do, this is the situation. It just becomes so difficult to even walk at time since you do not know who is standing where. Secondly, I have had to spend more than half an hour at times when I get late from where for a bus to arrive. This is such a risky situation as you always have men lurking around you,” says Priyanka Nayak, a private firm employee.  

Kumaraswamy Layout

Many layouts do not have night patrolling. It gets extremely tough for women to spot a cop on the street especially while walking along a lonely stretch. Says Manaswini, a second PU student and a resident of Kumaraswamy Layout: "I have my coaching classes which go on until about 9 pm. Even though I have my own vehicle, I find it better to call my father to escort me home since I find it very unsafe. There are times when the street lights do not work and we are left with no choice but to walk in the dark. I think brighter lights need to installed and all the faulty one must compulsorily be replaced. Only then can the women in this City walk freely without fear. It is not always possible to stick to the main roads which are well lit.”

VARNASHREE, Student, Banashankari

Many times, I’ve had to call my mother to walk me home from the main road after alighting the bus. Government sho­uld provide adequate patrol­ling staff on the roads or ensure all the streetlights are functioning properly so that no one can dare to take liberty with a girl taking advantage of the darkness.