'Road maintenance neglected'

'Road maintenance neglected'
Bangalore, DHNS:
Karnataka has become notorious for several reasons - pothole-ridden roads, motorists violating every rule under the law or 9,000 fatalities a year in road mishaps, said Prof B K Chandrashekhar, former chairman of the Karnataka Legislative Council.

Speaking at the 12th year anniversary celebrations of the Bangalore Tourist Taxi Owners’ Association (BTTOA) here on Saturday, Prof Chandrashekhar said, it is a matter of shame that the State, known for having produced the best engineers like Sir M Visvesvaraya, has the worst roads and highways in the country.

“Even Tamil Nadu and Kerala are better on this front. It is really sad that civic bodies entrusted with maintaining roads have neglected the State. This has also resulted in accidents that have gone up manifold,” he rued.

He demanded uniformity in implementation of speed governors across the country. New Delhi, Kerala and Karnataka have speed governor rule for commercial vehicles. This alone will not reduce number of accidents. The police and transport department have a herculean task on their hands to bring about law and order on the roads, he said.

Transport Commissioner Bhaskar Rao and BTTOA President K S Thantry were present at the meet which was sponsored by Maruti Suzuki.