This morning, when I started out for my walk, my world looked pretty normal. Not perfect which is normal. But when I returned half an hour later I could not recognize my road as it was packed with vehicles of all kinds honking away impatiently . It seemed as though some kind of Traffic Tsunami had moved Bannerghatta Road to our doorstep crushing the 3 lanes in-between. And then I realized that this was indeed the final scene of a drama that has been unfolding on our road for about a month. Only we didn’t see it coming nor did we get any memo despite the fact that ours is a private residential layout.
Act 1 A month ago
Without any warning hordes of people descended on our layout armed with heavy iron implements. In another age and time this could have easily been mistaken for an invasion by a hostile tribe. They even behaved like invaders just digging away all over without any regard for how people were supposed to get out of their houses or how their vehicles were supposed to get out.. My neighbour who was out of town had been cut off from the road for the next 14 days as they dug up before his garage and went away without closing it. Fortunately, as they were about to dig a moat before my house I went looking for the guy in charge and asked him what the hell they thought they were doing. He said that they were widening the road and also added that they would be pulling out the plants outside my house. He sounded like I had done something illegal by planting them there. Anyway, I requested them to try and keep the trees and do whatever they wanted with the rest. So they dug up , left a lot of granite rubble all over the street, heaped the detritus outside our houses and disappeared.
Mission accomplished – in theory we had a road of the stipulated breadth. File closed. I am sure the contractor got his payment and went home happy. Apparently it wasn’t part of the mission to ensure that the extended part of the roads needed to be fit for use.
Act 2. A week ago
Few more trucks. Few more men who unloaded huge cement/concrete blocks from these trucks which were eventually placed on the side of the road to demarcate the footpath from the road.
Here a short note about footpaths would not be out of place. They don’t actually have anything to do with your foot or a pathway. The name denotes their historic purpose. In most parts of Bengaluru, we do not believe that people on foot have any right to use roads. If they stupidly insist on it, they may do so at their own peril.
See picture: Do you actually think anyone could actually use this path? or it was even intended to be used?
Act 3. Yesterday. 4:30 p.m
A digger/excavator type vehicle arrived before our neighbour’s house and two policemen followed on a motorcycle. I watched the policemen exchange some conversation with the neighbour who seemed confused. As he went inside banging the door shut, two men got some crowbars from the excavator and began to dig up a patch outside his house.
This seemed straight out of a murder mystery. I wondered what the police were looking for – stolen stuff? a body? some evidence for sure? A small crowd of on-lookers began to gather and the police were waving them away. I pretended not to look but kept my attention focused on the goings-on. After about 20 minutes of digging they called the policemen to take a look. As I eagerly waited for some offending piece of evidence to emerge, they brought a road sign that denoted NO ENTRY and placed it in the pit and shoveled the mud back in to hold it in place.
Even this did not prepare me for what was to come this morning. From this morning it seems that about a hundredth of Bengaluru vehicles have been passing right outside my house. There is no one to tell them where to turn and how to go or that honking is not going to help. Whoever had the bright idea to divert traffic through our layout did not seem to have thought of the fact that beyond our road, these vehicles would have to use a series of roads barely about 15 ft in breadth before they can reach the next main road. So there is mayhem caused by the bottleneck at both ends making the traffic halt every 5 minutes. As traffic is flowing in both directions, there is not adequate clearance for the huge buses to turn in and out of our road. Smaller vehicles are spilling into the bylanes of our colony , crowding them but still unable to get out.
This has been going on from 7:15 this morning and as I write this at 11 a.m, from my terrace I can count 9 buses, 32 scooters and 42 cars on my road. And most of them are honking away as an outlet to their anger and frustration. And not a single traffic policeman is in sight.
Even our dogs freaked out. That is poor kaiser, my neighbour,there in the picture
After living in this country for 51 years, I must be stupid or naive to even think these thoughts. But I will ask them anyway:
why don’t authorities think it is necessary to give any advance information to the general public
(even through a newspaper ad ) especially when it is something that rips your normal life apart
-like diverting thousands of vehicles through a residential layout?
- or digging up the road right in front of your house?
- or tarring the road all through the night disturbing your sleep?
Not so much as a ‘you- have-no- choice –but- be warned’ memo?
(And don't try to be smart and ask me what I could have done if they had informed me. May be I'd have sound-proofed my house? packed bags and moved to the Himalayas? or bought enough sleeping pills?At least I would have been mentally prepared!)
Why is it that people who come to lay the roads or water pipes and dig up your roads act as though it is a huge favor being done to you? Why are honest tax payer treated like they are on relief supplies in a refugee camp? Do they know we actually “pay’ for these ‘services’ many times even ‘before’ they are provided?
How come these road-diggers get paid even when they leave the place like an archeological ruin after they are supposed to have ‘completed’ their work?
Why is it that my BSNL landline hasn’t been working for 6 days and every time I call to check status I am informed by an irritatingly cheerful voice that my complaint has been registered already and my docket no is .... And yet no one has come to repair the line? Has BSNL gone out of business and did the postman forget to deliver me the memo?
Why is there a Postal department when I don’t seem to receive half the mails that are sent to me?
Why do we pay our taxes and where do our taxes go?
Why do we elect a government and what does the government do?
Oh ya I forgot, we are supposed to SHUT UP and vote!
That, in short, is what is happening in my (rocking) life this Wednesday morning. So when this half-full-glass –types annoying- optimist friend called me now, I had to rant and let off steam.
And she said ‘ come on, count your blessings!’
‘Like what?’ I asked
‘You are A.L.I.V.E! Isn’t that a blessing?’
Y.e.a.h... I.am a.l.i.v.e. And that is a blessing ? Like how?
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Just heard that all this pandemonium is because they are tarring the main arterial road (bannerghatta Road) But that is make me feel any better about the bad way the whole thing was planned.There doesn't seem to be any concern for the residents or road-users. In fact we are supposed to feel grateful that they are filling up the gaping holes on Bannerghatta Road and thank them for it.
Hi Usha
The problem of digging up roads and not restoring them to their original condition is a perennial problem in India...When i used to live at Secunderabad,almost all the roads in our area at Marredpally were dug up badly and they were never repaired..in the monsoons,the roads would be impossible to navigate...
It is sad that no attention is given to basic infrastructure...
Sri
Usha,
As a fellow sufferer from road-widening related sudden digging in Pune , and outside our campus in Mumbai, I completely understand. While in Pune they managed to simply snap the water connection to the house , in Mumbai, I have had to take recourse to a whistle while crossing the chaos outside, which I must do for my daily/weekly shopping. The people who connect the water supply are different from those that disconnect, would you believe that ? And I had to search for them , call them, and stand like a guard (lest they disappear with T-joints), while they attempted to connect a disorganized mess by then.
I am thinking of offering professional consultancy to people plagued with similar problems.:-)
I guess God intended us to improve our tolerance....
oh BSNL my line hasnt been working for the past 3.5 months now after countless phone calls and numerous visits to their multiple offices we were informed that a line man would be sent home
he came home with a 2-y old rs 425 bill and said it is due and hence the phone has been disconnected he also said that he can pay that for me and get it started i gave him a 500 note and he said he will give the change back to me and he is missing since past 3 weeks
the phone is still not working
Hi Usha
I was reading your DILs blog this morning and learnt about this horrible idea of BBMP's. There has to be some answer ability in governance, but I guess we Indians have also gotten used to not revolting or asking questions with the standard "chalta hai" attitude.. :(
Traffic and commercial establishments trespassing into residential localities is the "in thing" in Namma Bengaluru these days. I am surprised heavy vehicles like buses squeezed into the narrow lane.
BSNL line not working? Are you sure you didn’t refuse the line man his "bakshish" for Ugadi last month?
A family friend once witnessed a postman tearing apart chunks of mails from his bag and getting rid of them in the Ulsoor lake. No kidding here!
Bottom line-“Government does donkey’s job”.
you are indeed very naive and innocent not to have taken this in your stride.isn't it enough that there is a road that can be widened or repaired or re routed?As for ugich I can relate to her pain (as well as yours) having been there and seen it.
I am glad you vented Usha. I really am. Indians have this "chalta hain" attitude. Or you know, "this is india, not US". but these are might important issues. We will forveer be stuck in the middle ages if you don't protest these things. A simple sign saying "new traffic pattern from so-and-so date" is not much to ask, right? It isn't. You remind me of my MIL and SIL. People lagh and shake their heads because they are so full of indignation about things like these. I am proud of them, as I am of you!
WOW!
I simply cannot say anything more than that. Just simply. WOW.
Some things just don't change eh? :-O
When I read about such instances, I just get really mad!! When will things change?
Please do file a complaint.. for whatever it is worth. Or at least send this post and the pictures to the newspaper.
I did a similar post sometime back
http://simple-sets-you-free.blogspot.com/2008/10/cleanliness-next-to-what-was-that.html
And to the footpath summary may i add that whether the pedestrains have right of way or not the vehicles definitely have. The shame while walking on the footpath is you get to honked at.
I understand this real well. For some reason thinking through does not seem to be in the genes of any of us Indians, and I blame myself too. Sadly I did not have much choice when I voted. Anyways, in Bombay too, the BMC closed a major road to repair the waterpipe and there was traffic chaos. So they decided to put off the work. But they also predict that the pipe could burst anytime due to age! Now how do they propose to solve this issue, only they know. Sigh!
ah tell me about it! when we woke up one morning in sarjapura road, they had already dug up on either side of our apartment and there was this huge crane right outside my balcony. Since then we had been unable to even open our windows. There was mud outside the apartment gate and when it rained, we couldnt get out of the building. My son ended up with severe dust allergies and we had to shift out of there last month :-( They are making a flyover there and since we have a road facing flat, i dont think we'll ever be able to go back there :-(
In Delhi there is something called the Residents'Welfare Association (RWA)which are extremely active and have on many occassions taken on the govt and won! I think Bengaluru needs that. It is impossible for individuals to address the prob alone. By the way, who is the MLA of your constituency?
Hi! Great post!
You might have been writing about the scene in front of the apartment building where I live, here in Mumbai!
For the moment, things are quiet, but during the past few months, digging has taken place for laying the Mahanagar gas pipes, water pipe repairs, pothole repairs, road widening, and who knows what else.
And nobody thnks that the road has to be restored to its earlier condition.
You comments have always been the words of inspiration for us.Please keep reading and commenting on my BLOG
http://jugaadworld.blogspot.comThank you
JUGAADU(Owner)
1) The routing through the layout is because of the storm water drain work on bannerghata road. Agree that notice should have been given but the work was stalled for a long time and suddenly started again as people started complaining. Hope that the work finishes before monsoon sets in full swing.
2) Planting stuff on the road is definitely illegal. Please measure the road width and check if it is the proposed road width by the layout constructors ? Trees and plants are definitely good for the environment but when they take away space that should be received for movement, it becomes illegal. We should have more planning and more space. Unfortunately we are short of land in this country of one billion.
3) I hope that the construction on bannerghata road comes to a conclusion soon and you could get back to your normal life.
4) It is high time that the government starts planning and constructing an alternate parallel road to bannerghata road. Metro staff is doing soil test on the road and once construction starts, life will turn into a night mare. Before that an alternate road has to be planned and developed. ( BTM 19th cross should ideally be extended to BTM 3& 4th stage extensions)
Well that's bad! But they do this almost certainly everytime! Dig up and divert traffic! It is terrible indeed! I have faced a lot of problems with BSNL too, I used to stay in BTM in a rented house with another one downstairs. Our lines were crossed, if one of us gets a call, both of our phones ring. We kept complaining but nothing happened. So we came to an understanding, we both pick the phone and then whoever it is not intended for keeps the receiver down. Problem solved and everyone lived happily ever after, well atleast until I got married and moved out!
Sri:There doesn't seem to be any inspection after the work is allotted. Also since the lowest bidder gets the job he cuts corners and does the basic minimum.
Ugich:I completely believe anything about the way govt departments operate. And it is amazing how they manage to always pass the buck to someone else while the customer goes around in circles.
Professional consultancy? If you have a manual please send me a operate the same way with a few changes here and there.
Monika: I am seriously considering getting rid of the BSNL line. They are unreliable, expensive and anyway it is a fixed line.
I hope you get hold of the lineman soon.
DivSu:I guess so many people want to be in the government because there is no answerability whatsoever. You go to them with one issue they will return the favor with two things against you .
Praveen: Thanks for forwarding this to bangalore Mirror. Right from day 2 we have a couple of policemen and all the roadsigns all the way and the situation is well under control.
BSNL - Ya I didnt give him diwali sweets.And I don't intend to in future!
jane Turley sent me a beautiful umbrella as a christmas gift which hasn't still reached me!
Hipgran: Some of us never learn no?
Dottie:Ya here we have to make everything work by screaming or pestering or persevering. nothing can be taken as a right as a taxpayer.
rads: No, they don't and the worst part is nobody complains either.
DC:Read your post and completely understand your anger.
Sumana:Oh yes I have seen two wheelers getting on to the footpaths and honking to clear the people walking there.Like I said, calling them footpaths is a misnomer.
Cuckoo:I understand that sometimes these things have to be endured when repair works are carried out. Why is it difficult to plan it better? Have policemen directing the traffic and roadsigns to guide them smoothly. Why must there always be a chaos whenever there is a diversion?
akaMonica: That is the thing. They dig up without considering that people need to get out of their houses. The thing is that these are casual laborers who have no idea why they are digging.
Diya: We have a resident's welfare association too but whenever they want to file a case the residents themselves protest saying it is a waste of legal fees. The MLA is from the ruling party here.
Manju:And they don't co ordinate the digging either. Everyone comes as he pleases. the only guys who close it back are the private cellphone guys like airtel and reliance.
Anon: Thanks for the inputs. Opposing viewpoints are welcome here so there is no need for anonymity.
Even if notice could not be given, having traffic policemen to regulate traffic might have avoided the chaos. From day 2 things are smooth. Imagine continuous honking for over 4 hours right behind two major hospitals other than spoiling the peace of the residents.
Well, these trees were provided by the forest department and they did not complain when we planted them. I am just maintaining them hoping there will be some shade for the road users.
No, our life has been altered forever because the smaller vehicles will continue to use this road. Only buses will go back to BGT road.
Yes we need an alternate route or we need another flyover to cater to the burgeoning traffic
Yikes, what a nightmare Usha. I live in a village so when night falls it's really quiet - I think I'd go bananas if I had to hear all that noise.
There's no excuse for bad planning - especially when there always seems to be a huge amount of civil servants. Sometimes I wonder what they do all day - except annoy the rest of us!
Usha,
You are very right in complaining about this. My father would love you for bringing up a subject a like this, especially in Banglore.Whenever I visit Banglore(my home), some construction or the other is going on and invariably traffic gets halted.
About planting trees,my parents live in Jaynagar and you will find atleast one tree in front of every house , which is authorized by the forest department, as you said.
I can empathise with you. Last weekend we were in Bangalore and passed through M.G.Road which has been dug up for Metro work. What you people will do when monsoon turns the mud into sludge!
While travelling through NH 45 and interior roads last week, we were impressed by the road widening efforts going on everywhere, even in small towns. Hopefully, in two years, our country would sport smooth and wide roads everywhere:-)But, no, our officials never visualize and plan for the problems in widening roads etc., but I must say they take quick action to reverse the fallouts!
There isn't ONE area of BLR that doesn't have it's share of mayhem, chaos thanks to illiterate asses who pretend to govern.
I've filed RTIs - it does have SOME effect.
I encourage ALL of you - Usha and commentators - to run, not walk, to the RTI office in the BBMP building next to Unity building, and FILE.
It keeps the governing folk on their toes, belive me. Do you homework, identify the responsible officer for your specific complaint - very very imposrant - and FILE
Do it.
Just do it.
I've had results.
Stop ranting away at a website...and yes I am a fellow sufferer. My mails are opened and then delivered - 6 months late, IF I'm lucky. And.. and... and ...endless complaints.
The biggest enemies are the
1. cranky egotistic neighbours who are selfish/don't cooperate
2. WE - you and me - for not chaing and shaming the relevant BBMP folk
FILE an RTI today