Going up and up...

Going up and up...
DH News Service
Cor that used to be a lush mangrove with plenty of green and open spaces several years ago, Puttenahalli is today like any other locality in the City that presents a stark contrast with its past.

A sleepy village a decade ago, Puttenahalli - sandwiched between JP Nagar and Kothanur - is now a bustling residential area where scores of high-rise apartments stand tall.

In view of its proximity to IT hubs like Electronic City and Bannerghatta Road, it has emerged as one of the most sought-after destinations for the City’s IT and BPO workforce on the lookout for a home.

Puttenahalli is home to some of the biggest apartment blocks such as Brigade Millennium, Purvanakara Elita, Shoba Tulip and Windsor Madhura.

PPP initiative

One of the first Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) initiatives undertaken for development and maintenance of infrastructure, it boasts of some of the best and most successful examples of PPP model.

If major roads such as the Puttenahalli Main Road and its connecting roads are in a motorable state, then the credit should go to the PPP model adopted by the civic authorities.

“One of the best things about Puttenahalli is the active involvement of private players like apartment associations and builders with the civic agencies for the development and maintenance of infrastructure facilities in the locality.

Two years ago when it rained, Puttenahalli was in a mess with water inundating every nook and corner. Now, with roads done up and with better sewage and drainage systems, we’re confident su ch a situation will not arise again,” Prof K S Bhat, President, Laburnum Brigade Millennium Residents’ Associations, told Deccan Herald.
Another reason why Bangaloreans prefer this area is the sprawling apartments which provide state-of-the-art housing facilities and other options for residents.

Many high-end apartment complexes like the Brigade Millennium is a mini township which provides facilities such as parks, jogging tracks, flood-lit stadiums, schools, recreation club, spa, swimming pool, convention centre, etc - all under one roof.

“What makes Puttenahalli special is the facilities these apartments offer. They have retained a portion of greenery whi ch provide the much-needed lung space for residents,” said Bruno, a management professional residing in the area for the past couple of years.

It is not that everything is fine in Puttenahalli.

Like other localities, this too is plagued by civic problems. Among these include improper roads, garbage menace, paucity of drinking water and lack of proper bus service.

Residents, especially those residing in Srinidhi Layout and Chunchakatta Main Road, voiced their concerns to Deccan Herald about the poor road conditions.

“Apart from Kothanur Main Road which connects JP Nagar and Brigade Millennium, other roads are badly maintained; the crossroads have not been asphalted and they pose a major problem especially when it rains,” said V Renu Kumar, President, Srinidhi Layout Welfare Association.

Similarly, the public bus service has drawn a lot of flak from residents who complain that despite Puttenahalli and surrounding areas witnessing an increase in population, the bus service has remained sub-standard.

“All buses are packed during peak hours and most of them are used for providing transport facilities for those working in Electronic City,” said another resident.

Residents are also unhappy over the shrinking of the locality’s green cover and water bodies.

The 70-hectare Puttenahalli-Sarakki lake, which was once a fresh water lake and home to a number of exotic birds, is now a shadow of its past.

Large-scale encroachments in and around the lake, indiscriminate dumping of garbage and diversion of sewage and drain water into the lake have not only polluted the lake, but left 75 per cent of it covered with weeds.
With hardly any space for free flow of rain water from the surrounding areas, residents of Puttenahalli Palya often have to bear the brunt whenever it rains as the area gets inundated.

“The government had promised the lake would be desilted and weeds removed but nothing of that has happened. A natural lake is not only dying but also leading to floods in the area whenever it rains,” said Radhakrishnan, a resident of Chunchakatta.