Authorities are unconcerned

Authorities are unconcerned

Deccan Herald

Most elected representatives chose to keep off the problems faced by the hapless citizens when heavy rains lashed the City.


Friday’s downpour may have been a nightmare for you. You may have been stranded on flooded roads, your house may have been flooded by storm-water drain, or the pavement in your area may have been crushed by an uprooted tree. And now are you looking for help or at least sympathy? Stick to your family and friends. For the “authorities concerned” are too busy to pay any attention to you.

Chief Minister Dharam Singh, who also holds the Bangalore development portfolio, was away in Shimoga on an election campaign.

The city Mayor claimed he had visited all the affected areas. You may have missed seeing him in your locality, for he was conducting a “private” inspection. He asserted that he could not undertake inspection openly as it was against the election code of conduct.


But, one wonders how the same code of conduct did not come in the way of Mr Dharam Singh visiting the rain-affected areas on May 24. He had also directed the BMP officials to take up desilting of Vrishubhavathi Valley with immediate effect.

The mayor told Deccan Herald: “I personally went to all the wards across Bangalore by a private car to see if the repair works are going on smoothly. I could not make my visit public because of the bypoll in Chamrajpet”.

“I will do everything in my capacity to ensure that Bangaloreans are not made to suffer,” he added.

None of the City MLAs also bothered to visit the rain-hit areas. Minister Ramalinga Reddy said he went on a padayatra in Sudhamnagar to campaign for the Congress party candidate. However, he said, “there seems to be no problem. No deaths have been reported”.

Opposition leaders B R Nanjundappa of the JD(S) and Mangala of the BJP did show their commitment to the people - but of their wards only. “There has been no damage in my ward. I did not feel the need to go to other areas,” said Nanjundappa. Mangala, more preoccupied with the bypoll, could only find time to make a quick trip to her ward Jogupalya.

Meanwhile, Vidhana Soudha wore a deserted look. However, it was not Bangalore inspection rounds that kept the ministers busy.

Barring one or two ministers, the rest of the ministers were camping in Shimoga. A JD (S) leader, who is camping in Shimoga, said, “We heard that it is raining heavily in Bangalore. But here we are sweating. The entire coalition government is here”.

Electronic and print media, which were in full attendance in Vidhana Soudha to seek the views of ministers on the completion of the one-year tenure of the coalition government, could no find even a single minister in their offices.

“After the June 2 by-elections, the next will be the taluk and zilla panchayat elections. Ministers will find some excuse to stay away from the State Secretariat”, an official said.

While Bangalore Mahanagar Palike staff enjoyed a compensatory off (as the employees worked on May 15 to conduct pulse polio programme), the BMP control room was working, receiving over 200 calls by hapless citizens. Commissioner N Jothiramalingam, incidentally, was on leave.