Faulty RuB works: Affected residents take out padayatra

Residents from Bajal and surrounding areas on Monday took out a procession from the underbridge at Padil to Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC) office, demanding the authorities concerned to set right the works.

The residents, who staged their protest under the banner of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), said that it had been a ‘from frying pan to fire’ sort of situation, as the construction of the road – that was supposed to bail out the residents in nearby localities from the problems they faced – had just aggravated the problem.

Mamatha, from Bajal, said, “Earlier, whenever the railway level crossing was closed on the Padil-Bajal road, people on the both sides – irrespective of pedestrians and vehicle-users – had to wait for the train to pass. Following  persistent demands, it was decided to build an underbridge and a foundation stone was laid two years ago. Now, although work is nearing completion, it is the common man again, who is let to suffer due to faulty road works. It turns into a deluge due to stagnation of water, with the area having rich sources of groundwater, coupled by rainwater.”

Leave aside elders, it is the school and college-going children, who also have to bear the brunt, as they are forced to take a detour from Yekkur side to reach Padil, said Mamatha.

‘Transport affected’

Geetha from Jalligudde said, “Such is the situation that, following the road works, even the number of buses that earlier operated from State Bank junction towards Bajal and surrounding localities has been reduced from seven to three.”

Premanath, from the same locality, pointed out that the road connects Bajal, Jalligudde, Faisal Nagar, Vijayanagar and Alape localities, with thousands of households in the same. The localities are split under four wards of the City Corporation, like Kannur, Alape-1, Bajal and Kankanady, with corporators belonging to two different political parties – Congress and BJP. Owing to lack of willingness among them, it is the people who are suffering. Ironically, although the national highway connects these localities via Yekkur, the absence of a service road on one side, has largely inconvenienced the road users, he explained.

Addressing protesters, DYFI state unit president Muneer Katipalla demanded that MP Nalin Kumar Kateel take immediate measures, as the said land comes under Railways. Moreover, the City Corporation officials should set right the anomalies, he said, and also warned of launching an indefinite protest if the authorities continued to remain nonchalant.

Secretary of DYFI district unit Santosh Bajal demanded a probe against the engineers for executing the works, which he called unscientific.