BANGALORE: Announce the arrival of a foreign delegate to Namma Bangalore and the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), and they will put any other city corporation to shame with their speedy execution of cleaning and repair works.But the same Palike has little to offer the people who are ‘unfortunately’ called citizens and tax payers.Just last week, the Palike was on its toes painting dividers, cleaning pavements and most of the potholes on the arterial roads were filled with surprising pace to welcome the Vietnamese Prime Minister.But the same treatment is not meted out to residents, who for long have not just filled the Palike’s pockets with their taxes, but are also paying the price for being ‘tax payers’.The residents of 9th Cross, 3rd Block, HBR Layout have been bearing the brunt of the Palike’s lackadaisical attitude for almost ten years now. “My father has been going to the authorities for years now in a desperate attempt to get the road outside our house fixed. While the authorities were kind enough to build the road uptil a few metres ahead of my house, I do not understand why they cannot finish the job?” asks Sharath, a resident. “I have met the Member of Parliament, the local legislator, the corporator and every BBMP Engineer for the past several years. I have brought them to this stretch and their assurances continue to be ‘mere assurances’," his father Govind added.The residents there have tried every method possible to get the attention of the authorities, but all have ended in vain. “During rains, there is over three feet of water here and it has become a breeding ground for mosquitoes,” he added.The residents are forced to use their cars or walk dangerously close to the open drains during heavy rains, to avoid walking in slushy waters. The local corporator , B Govindaraju admitted the existence of such conditions.“I know that there are parts of the locality that still have roads that are neither asphalted nor motorable or maintained.” He further added, “I have raised the matter and the Palike has given Rs 43 crore for the development of the entire ward.Apart form laying a coat of asphalt on the roads, we will also remodel the drainage system here as they are very old and need remodelling.” When enquired about the time line for completion of the work, he responded that the work should begin in another two to three months.“I can assure that the work will begin in the next couple of months, but I cannot give any guarantee about when it will be completed,” he added. While the corporation and its representatives are deep in slumber, residents continue to suffer due to the former’s inefficiency.
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