Bengaluru: Residents of Hari Krishna Lane, near Nehru Circle in Seshadripuram, complain that despite frequent repairs the road is perpetually dotted with potholes. Though the road was asphalted a year ago, it didn’t last even six months and it is a nightmare for motorists. The work on the underpass near Kino Theatre has made things worse as many vehicles get diverted to this road
"In the last 15 years the frequency of tar applied on the roads has increased. The quality has reduced drastically and they keep redoing it. This was not how things were before," recalled Nagabushan, a long time resident of Seshadripuram. He felt that construction and maintenance of basic civic amenities was lacking in Bengaluru.
Nehru Circle in Seshadripuram is a spoke-like intersection connecting major roads such as Race Course, Sheshadri Road, and Majestic bus stand. The Hare Krishna lane, one of the five spokes, where
Nagabushan resides, is filled with deep potholes. "From what I remember, they reapplied tar a year ago, but six months ago, the potholes started showing up. Whenever it rains, a layer of the tar gets washed away. It is dangerous when it gets dark. We can't even see where we are driving, go right inside the pothole and come flying out," said Mahesh, who has been working at an office in 2nd cross road, within the locality for the past 2 years.
Since the perpendicular Platform Road is seeing major repair, the traffic ends in an obstruction, literally.
"First they block the main (Platform) road leading to Majestic. On the other side, Risaldar street joining Anand Rao circle is also off limits. The Hare Krishna Road near our homes is in a terrible condition as BMTC buses pass by," said Nagabushan, who resides in the 4th cross road.
Naturally, to avoid the buses and high risk potholes, we all divert our cars and two-wheelers to the inner lanes, which also get jammed. It is better to sit at office and come after 8 pm rather than face the rush at 6 pm, he added.
The citizens agree that both the main road and inner lanes have poorly laid out. Workers use just one inch of material or even less, instead of the mandated 3-4 inches, they claimed. The work has been done in a haphazard manner.
‘Hare Krishna Road will be fixed in 45 days’
Interview with Corporator Latha Kuvar Rathod, Gandhi Nagar ward
Why there are many potholes on Hare Krishna Road?
We covered the potholes recently, around two months ago, but wear and tear occurs. Frankly, the tarring for this whole road was not done earlier. The BWSSB also started working on their pipeline connections, for which they had dug up the roads in the ward. Moreover, ever since the repair work of Kino Theatre Underpass has begun, the potholes and ditches have increased.
Why is it not being fixed?
The pipe leakages have to be fixed before we start road work. We don't want more eruptions and drain leaks. We will take special care to redo it and not touch the road again. The sanction for asphalting has been done, but there was a dispute between two contractors who had applied. They took it to the High Court which delayed the process.
What can be done now and how long will it take?
We have done tarring other roads in our ward, right from Kumara Park. For Hare Krishna Road, we are waiting for the Kino Theatre underpass and BWSSB work to be over. We are no longer going to wait for the contractors to settle their dispute. MLA Dinesh Gundurao and I held a meeting with the BWSSB to finish pending work, so that we can start our work before the monsoon. It will be done in 45 days.
