The Deccan Herald  22.11.2010

Slow work on SWD cuts off road

Bangalore, Nov 21, DHNS:

Bilekahalli Corporator Roopa complains official apathy; project began in 2007

Bilekahalli (188) is one of the new wards of Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) but the ward has an old problem - apathy of the Palike officials.

An incomplete stormwater drain (SWD) project commissioned in 2007 has left the residents of Ranka Colony road with no road to connect their homes. Besides, the incomplete work has resulted in deterioration of the road and an open drain invites danger here. According to the residents, a woman drowned in the drain about 18 months ago. But the Palike officials seem to be blind to the residents’ plight.

Today, Ranka road, with more than five apartment complexes and over 1,500 flats has just one road connecting it to Bannerghatta road as another road was dug out as part of the BBMP project. With water logging after every rain and construction equipment being dumped constantly, the only mud road is also unusable.

“We’ve tried everything in the book including making an offer that we will lay the roads ourselves but all has gone in vain,” said Sreenivas, former secretary of a residents’ association.

Corporator Roopa Ramesh said the project is worth Rs nine crore and will be completed in three phases, of which only one was approved.

The corporator who finally visited the spot on repeated requests said that the first package has been awarded to class one contractors Gangadhar and Ravi and the work is in progress (for four years now). On why the work on other two phases has not begun, Roopa said “Work can be taken up once the work code is given and the BBMP has not even provided that to begin with.”

Funds not received

She added that her ward has not received any money from the Palike even though the budget envisages Rs three crore for every new ward. “We need at least Rs 11 crore but the Palike has sanctioned only Rs three crore and even that has not reached me,” she said.

She has, after receiving complaints from the residents, spoken to the Commissioner Siddaiah who has promoised to expedite the in work.

On whether there could be a temporary arrangement until the project is complete, she replied that the work to lay a temporary concrete road will begin on November 22. 

The assurance came in after the residents had a long, heated argument with Roopa for failing to keep her electoral promises.

However, the BBMP has been vary of laying the road which has been deteriorated due to the project as the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board’s underground drainage project is coming up.

“The place where the BBMP can lay the road is where the BWSSB drainage project is slated to come up and laying the road would just mean that they will dig it up again,”
Roopa pointed out. The road lacks streetlights making it even worse for vehicleusers and pedestrians to use the road in the night, Appachu another resident averred.

For this problem, Roopa said that once the project is completed the road will connect Bannerghatta Road to Silk Board and will be completely lit. The storm water, she said will reach Rajakaluve near the Silk Board before finally flowing into Chalghatta lake.

The Times of India              20.11.2010

Civic body glare on illegal bldgs in Salt Lake

KOLKATA: The Trinamool-run Bidhannagar Municipality has finally decided to conduct a thorough survey of residential buildings in the township that have deviated from building rules.

The target would be house owners who have built additional floors without officially informing the civic body. The municipality survey will identify such buildings and their owners will then be served notices.

The issue of illegal buildings was discussed at a meeting at the municipality on Friday. "We have just decided to send notices to all such residential households who have built additional floors without permission. Many such illegal acts were allowed during the previous Left-run civic board which we cannot allow. This is just the first step to prevent and control such unauthorised acts. We will have to go through the entire building rules," said municipality chairperson Anita Mandal. For now, however, the civic body will not demolish any illegal floor.

There have been numerous complaints of structures being constructed flouting building rules. It was during the regime of the last Left-run civic board that the civic body sent a proposal to the state urban development department to allow construction of an additional floor on top of residential houses in the township. However, the proposal is yet to be approved by the urban development department.

With the Trinamool now taking over the civic board and some major rifts already occurring between the civic authorities and the urban development department, it is not likely that there would be a consensus between the two sides to determine policies. Only a few months ago, the civic body had decided that it would not issue no-objection certificates to those who wanted to run businesses in residential households.