Bengaluru: Civic chaos in Bengaluru has finally reached tipping point. With three jam-packed days of campaigning after the nominations were filed, citizen activists and resident welfare groups have been on their toes just as much as candidates, running around their wards and spreading awareness on voting for the right person. Wishlists, or manifestos, as they are called in some wards, have been drafted by resident welfare associations and handed out to each of the candidates. The meet-the-candidate initiative has been a formidable affair in areas like the Mahadevapura zone, one of the most troubled in terms of civic well-being.
“The Election Commission has released the criminal case history of the various candidates. This we distribute among citizens and when the public forum takes place, candidates are asked a lot of difficult questions,” said Arvind Keerthi, one of the Whitefield’s most prominent citizen activists. “The response has been varied, however. Some sessions are attended by a lot of people, but those organised on weekday evenings don’t get the same response,” he added.
Richard’s Town, which is Ward 81, also has a very active resident welfare association. This group has had its hands full with the slaughterhouse on Tannery Road, which, according to High Court, should be shut down. “The animals are killed in a brutal way and blood and offals are emptied en masse into the storm water drain, which carries it to Ulsoor Lake,” said K.G. Shashidhar, President of the Richard's Town Residents' Association.
An election wishlist has been circulated among candidates, but Shashidhar admits that finding out who the contestants are is a problem.
“We have managed to meet with five of the contestants,” he explained. Ironically, Shashidhar spoke to this newspaper when he was stuck in one of the colossal traffic jams that take place in the area each day. “We just heard today that the 100 metre stretch near Davis Road took a resident 40 minutes to cover,” he said.
