Vijayanagar: Health hazards and more

Vijayanagar: Health hazards and more
G Manjusainath and Poornima Nataraj
The fifth installment of the interactive, comprehensive CITISENSE series throws light on Vijayanagar constituency. The local MLA has lined up many development works there. But until that materialises, the residents would have to live through their problems.

The profusion of open drains and the absence of basic hygiene facilities in most pockets of Vijayanagar constituency are aspects that make the residents highly vulnerable to any epidemic. It goes without saying that problems prevalent in other places like potholed roads, scarcity of water, non-removal of garbage and malfunctioning streetlights abound here.

Health is the biggest worry staring at the face of the residents here. Chikungunya and Tuberculosis are recurring diseases. A private practitioner Dr Basavaraj attests to that. “I have a regular stream of people coming over with symptoms of the disease. The poor hygiene levels in the area are clearly the reason.”

Hampinagara


Uncleared garbage seems to be spilling over onto the roads in most areas here. Residents of BDA Layout appear comfortably placed but are bogged down by security concerns. Recent incidents of theft have rattled them. There is also a threat of encroachment in the area surrounding the railway line. Harshini, an entrepreneur, who assists her father’s business says, “There is no problem as such but what we are seriously worried about are the criminal activities. A daily problem is the traffic blockage at the Railway Crossing.”

KP Agrahara

The problems faced by the residents of KP Agrahara is not different from Bapujinagar. A doctor said that many of his patients were TB and Chikungunya patients. “The dog menace is quite serious,” he added.

Bapujinagar

Blocked drainages dominate the problems in this area. “Open drains are full of silt and there is no passage to make the water flow out,” point out many residents. And these drains are held responsible for ruining the health of many.

Amrin Taj, who runs an educational institute `Al-Fahad’, states they are afraid of their buildings getting demolished. “There is a proposal to construct a Railway Over Bridge (ROB) to connect Hampinagara and Bapujinagar.” Dog menace and chikungunya continue to prevail here, she added.

Gaali Anjaneya Ward

Encroachment of government land takes place on a large scale at Gaali Anjaneya Ward right under the nose of BBMP officicals, alleged former corporator Lakshminarayana. “River Vrushabhavati, which was once a boon for Bangalore has now become a curse. The river is now a stormwater drain that carries the filth and garbage of the city and Ranganatha Layout is paying the price as it is located on one of its banks,” he said. On the other side is a pile of debris of demolished buildings.

Vidyaranyanagara

In comparison with the neighbouring wards, residents here seem a satisfied lot. Gubbaiah and Tejashree are happy with the water supply, sanitation work and cleanliness drive carried out by the BBMP officials periodically. “What I find painful is the irresponsible behaviour of the residents who throw garbage and edibles in open place creating an unhygienic atmosphere for all of us.”

M L A S P E A K S: M Krishnappa

On increase in the outbreak of diseases such as TB, Chikungunya and viral fever in Kempapura Agrahara area:

The water lines in KP Agrahara is around 40 years old and there were instances of drains getting mixed with water pipes. However, a proposal has been made to replace the existing pipelines at the cost of Rs 3 crore. The work will be completed in a month's time.

On open drains in Bapujinagar and KP Agrahara, which could be a cause for an epidemic:

Bapujinagar has always had open drains, as there are no under-ground drainage pipes. We are planning to fence the drains as of now so that the public does not throw garbage into the drains. However separate sanitary lines have been proposed from KP Agrahara, Cholarapalya and Bapujinagar to Vrushabhavathi River at a cost of Rs 28 crores which would be completed in six months time.

On traffic congestion at the Railway grid-locks during peak hours:

We have proposed to build three underpasses in consultation with the railway authorities. However, it is still in the talking stage which would take more than a year for execution.

On Vijayanagar and surrounding areas being rowdy breeding localities:

There were some chain snatching incidents in RPC Layout, after which we had called a meeting with the police officials. There is a shortage of 21 constables in our area and a letter has been written to the Police Commissioner in this regard.

P E O P L E S P E A K

The door to door garbage system is not regular and people throw garbage and edibles on the footpath due to which stray dogs have increased in our area.

Gubbaiah resident of Vidyaranyanagar

There is no public toilet in our area, the nearest Nirmala toilet we have is near Prasanna theatre opposite to the police station which is one kilometer from here.

Mohammed Usman resident of Vidyaranyanagar

The population in our area has increased, so people are facing water problem in the area. Sometimes the water that is pumped is less and since it is an alternate days water supply, there is some water problem.

H Ravindra ex-corporator

Our area is comparatively developed then other areas in Vijaynagar, however near the railway cross when there is a grid-locking, the place gets totally jam-packed. The problem has to be solved to avoid the congestion.

Harshini RPC layout

Vijayanagar prone to rowdy crimes

Some localities in Vijaynagar are breeding grounds for rowdy elements. The frequent murder cases bear testimony to this fact. In most cases, rowdy-sheeters are the accused as well as the victims since the murders are motivated by old rivalries.

A local leader was hacked to death in front of his house last year in Vijaynagar. Another was eliminated as he refused to give just Rs 9 to the accused in Deepanjalinagar, a rowdy was murdered in broad day light on January 10.

DEVELOPMENT WORKS IN VIJAYANAGAR

* A 1.75 m road on Vrishabhavathi River is proposed from Kavika Bridge to Nayandahalli Bridge on Outer Ring Road at an approximate cost of Rs. 300 crore. The proposal has been submitted to the Chief Minister for review.

* Remodeling of Primary & Secondary Storm Water Drain Culverts and formation of roads in Vrishabhavathi Valley at a cost of Rs. 28.93 lakh.

* Providing chain link fencing on either side of Vrishabhavathi main valley at a cost of Rs. 64.8 lakh.

* Development of Deepanjalinagar lake at ward 41 Gali Anjanaiah at a cost of Rs. 2.85 lakh.

* Under the JN-NURM project, concreting of roads, building parks and fixing around 3000 sodium and tube lights around Vijayanagar.



Next Citisense - Pulakeshinagar :The next Citisense will focus on problems and development in Pulakeshinagar Constituency. Resident Welfare Association members and residents of Pulakeshinagar Constituency can send in their grievances mentioning their names and numbers to dhreporting@gmail.com by January 21.