Residents of Bengaluru's Bellandur Kodi, Sakra Hospital area protest dug-up roads

Bengaluru: Ongoing roadworks near Sakra Hospital Road, connecting Bellandur Kodi, have once again highlighted the neglected infrastructure of southeastern Bengaluru. 

On Monday, residents of the Bellandur Outer Ring Road area staged a protest against the lack of action and authorities' indifference in resolving the long-pending infrastructural works.

"No need for moon missions, Isro — Just Drive Here. Broken roads, broken promises — time for action,” read the banners displayed by the residents, who claimed that despite multiple attempts, the civic bodies have not addressed their grievances.

The road connects Sakra Hospital to Lake Road, which is home to several apartment complexes like Mantri Espana, Sobha Iris, and Vaswani Villas.

For nearly a month, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) has been carrying out underground drainage (UGD) work on the road connecting Sakra Hospital with the Outer Ring Road (ORR) near Devarabeesanahalli.

Simultaneously, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has dug up another stretch connecting Sakra Hospital with Bellandur Kodi for stormwater drain work.

Clement Jayakumar of the Mahadevapura Task Force criticised the delays, stating that the work should have been completed long ago.

Last week, frustrated by the never-ending roadwork, residents of Kariyammana Agrahara staged a protest, demanding quicker completion.

Similar issues across city 

Similar disruptions are seen on Horamavu Agara Road, which connects Hennur depot. 

Roads here were dug up for the Cauvery pipeline installation, adding to traffic congestion, said resident Vinod George. “There’s a huge pile of soil blocking the connecting roads, and water leakage from a specific portion is making things worse,” he noted, calling the past three weeks a “nightmare”.

Sandhya Rao, an IT professional commuting to Manyata Tech Park via Geddalahalli, also raised concerns about the Cauvery pipeline project. “While the work is progressing quickly, the roads remain severely damaged. Two-wheeler riders are forced to navigate deep, crater-like potholes,” she said.

Official response 

A BWSSB official stated that UGD work on the road connecting ORR with Sakra Hospital has been completed and will be asphalted next week by the BBMP.

Officials also assured that roads dug up for the Cauvery water pipeline work would be repaired once the project is completed.

"The asphalting of dug-up roads will be done after the work is complete. We don’t want to asphalt and dig again," a senior BWSSB official told DH.

Echoing this, a senior BBMP official in charge of roadworks added, "The BBMP is tarring concrete roads dug up for BWSSB work in some stretches. In others, the BWSSB is handling the resurfacing through tenders."