Problems dog Bannerghatta Road

Problems dog Bannerghatta Road
The Times of India

Bannerghatta Road: Country’s premier educational centre, the Indian Institute of Management, is here. So are some leading business process outsourcing centres. Corporate banks and superstores jostle for space with residential complexes.

Bannerghatta Road has become a hub of activity but the dreadful roads, inadequate drainage and smelly garbage
are clear indicators that amenities don’t match the requirement. The roads are so pathetic that tourist influx at Bannerghatta National Park has come down. Recently, a butterfly park here was inaugurated and the authorities wanted to invite President A P J Abdul Kalam to inaugurate it. But the idea was dropped, thanks to the potholeridden road.
Traversing the road during peak hours can be a nightmare — you need 45 minutes to go from JP Nagar III Phase to Meenakshi Temple. The road is being asphalted. According to Krishnamoorthy, a resident, the work has resumed after a sixmonth break. Scores of HTVs, laden with building construction materials, use this road.

“The road is in bad condition and the authorities keep making promises. When marriages of high-profile families take place in these kalyana mantapas, there is total chaos. They don’t bother about us,” said Thyagaraj Sharma, a resident.
Though the police have prevented heavy vehicular traffic from entering the main road till 6 pm, their entry at other times takes a heavy toll on other commuters.

“The road is absolutely atrocious. Last February, the residents took out a march to force the authorities to repair the road. We were driven to this move when two young women had miscarriages after travelling on this road. However, the PWD laid one layer of asphalt in July 2005 but that got washed away following heavy rain. Obviously, it was of inferior quality. The authorities have promised to put the second layer,’’ another resident Jill Devi Prasad pointed out.

There is only one entrance and exit to Bannerghatta Road. And less said the better about the side roads, especially those near Adiga’s Hotel, opposite the Accenture office and in Pandurangnagar. The drainage is another serious problem and after every downpour, low-lying areas get flooded.

Says CMC Bommanahalli councillor A N Muralidhara: “The BWSSB has not upgraded the sanitary lines on road. The sewage water from about 10,000 houses is let into the open rainwater channel. The autorickshaw stands here need to be repositioned. There are no traffic policemen to manage traffic.’’

According to vice-president of CMC Bommanahalli Purshotham, the number of automobiles to and from the software companies is quite high. “The volume of traffic will come down by at least 40% with the completion of the bridge at MICO Junction. Traffic signals are badly needed at the Arakere, Bilekahalli and Hulimavu intersections. There are no policemen at Bannerghatta Road to control the traffic.”