Cycling lane that cost 13 cr has been ripped apart to plant saplings

Utter madness in BBMPs methods

 

Cycling lane that cost 13 cr has been ripped apart to plant saplings

Barely six months ago,pedestrian-friendly footpaths in Jayanagar were narrowed down to make way for the cycling lane.And now on a whim,the civic body has dug it up and planted saplings that are sure to wither and die in the concrete surroundings

As stakeholders in Bangalore's development,we the citizens often end up using a Shakespearean prism like Polonious seeing a method in Hamlets madness in trying to see a glimmer of logic in BBMP sactions.How else does one account for the Palike's decision to narrow pedestrian-friendly footpaths by half so as to accommodate a parking/cycling lane less than six months ago at a cost of Rs 13 crore,then dig up its own work to plant saplings along the stretch! If that's not puzzling enough,sample this: There are at least four new boards pointing to a rain water harvesting line under the footpaths,but a walk along the stretch didnot throw up even a single entry point for rain water.

Little wonder,then,that residents who live in the vicinity of the 20th Cross and 21st Cross in Jayanagar 4th T block are not amused.It was great to hear that they wanted to spruce up the area.The footpaths were worn out and the road had begun to spring potholes.So when BBMP went about the work with gusto,we were impressed, says Sathyanarayan Rao,a 73-year-old retired professor of Physics whose house is located along the stretch.The final product was polished and neat and got the residents vote.We had very good footpaths with proper tiles,and the road was neat and clean.Sure,we were not keen on the footpaths being narrowed down,but you can't have everything,says 27-year-oldArchanaVeeresh,a school teacher and resident of the area.The total expenditure on the project was around Rs 13 crore.

That was six months back; now, the residents are watching helplessly as BBMP has begun tearing up the road to plant saplings -- which in any case have no hope of survival in an expanse of concrete. “You cannot plant saplings with a concrete layer around them, because this does not allow the roots to spread out and grow,” says M B Krishna, a city-based ornithologist. 

At least 20 saplings have been planted along the half-kilometre stretch, complete with railings that advertise the ‘public service’ of local corporator C K Ramamurthy and Jayanagar MLA N Vijaya Kumar. “If they intended to plant saplings, why tar the road less than three months earlier and waste public money?” asks Rao.

But the real mystery is the boards (with arrows pointing downwards) that publicise a rain water harvesting line running under the footpaths. 

A walk along the stretch failed to show us a single entry point for rain water. “We have no idea where the rain water is meant to percolate into the ground; the engineering is mystifying,” say the residents.

When we tried to reach the corporator and the MLA, but both remained unavailable. Officials of BBMP’s engineering wing said the required engineering parameters had been applied for the project. 

To our observation – backed by photographs -- of there being no inlet for rain water along the stretch, they insisted that there were several. “We picked the lowest level along the stretch for the water to percolate. Maybe they (the inlets) are covered with leaves,” was their explanation.