RW April 2018 Wrap: MLA, abandoned cars, tree-cutting, Residents Watch impact & more

Acid test for MLA Satish Reddy

May 15 will decide the fate of Bommanahalli MLA Satish Reddy. HSR Layout comes under his jurisdiction. One cab driver said, “He was great in his first term but lagged way behind in his second.” He also scored just 40 marks in the Bangalore Political Action Committee’s (B.PAC) MLA ratings. Will he score a hat trick and win a third time or will someone better than him take over?

It’s all very easy to say, ‘get out there and vote’. But when most people are outsiders who don’t care about the locality or the city they live in, what will prompt them to vote. They are here just for 1-3 years and in many cases, their voter IDs authorise them to cast their franchise in their native place. Another scenario is that most voters have no clue who their MLA or corporator is. In such circumstances, voter education is key. But who can conduct an impartial probe on every candidate and lay out everything that the voter should know about every candidate? The Election Commission?

Until the voters are not swerved by caste, creed and party, the best candidates can win. But will the people get this in their head? The penny is yet to drop. Our advice: Vote on merit, not based on caste and party. The right candidate, even if it’s just one person, can make a difference!

Trees cut yet again
Just when the tree cutting near the twin park in Sector 3 was still fresh in our minds, we hear news that yet another fully-grown tree has been cut on 22nd Cross opposite HSR Club in Sector 3. The twin park work was supposed to be the handiwork of Bescom. Who is behind this one? No one knows. “All that the shopkeeper overlooking the tree said was that the tree was very much there when he shut shop at 9.30pm,” says Anil. Clearly, this was an overnight activity to stay away from vigilant residents. It’s time to check the CCTV footage from shops across the road and nail the culprits.

Residents Watch impact
After our magazine highlighted some of the pitiable roads in Residents Watch, there has been some action by the BBMP. A good stretch of 23rd Cross off 14th Main has been completely re-tarred. Every other time, they would just patch up the pothole and move on. However, the quality of the work where potholes once existed is still suspect. Residents are not sure if the road will hold for long. Similarly, we had written about a bad spot of 22nd Cross. That has been fixed too, but it’s patchwork at best. One big rain and it will be worse. Meanwhile, the other roads we had highlighted are yet to be done. And they include: 17th A Main, 23rd A Cross; 18th Cross, 14th Main; 22nd Cross, 17th Main; 26th Cross, 19th Main, 17th B Main, 25th Cross; 17th C Main and 23rd B Cross. Will the BBMP officials fix these bad roads immediately please?

Abandoned cars galore
This has become a perennial problem in HSR Layout. Just because the roads are wider, garage owners and even thieves make it a convenient place to park their vehicles for days and months together. But HSR cops reveal an interesting twist to the tale. Apparently, most of the abandoned two wheelers and cars that the residents report to the cops happen to be belonging to the residents themselves. “They happen to be PG students or young working professionals who would have parked their vehicle to go on a vacation or to their native place,” said one police constable. “Rarely have we found vehicles that were stolen.”

Resident activist honoured
HSR resident BV Lalithamba is behind every other social initiative in HSR Layout such as the recent one involving the donation of stationery items to poor school students. For her commendable service in the last several years, she was felicitated by union defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman last month.

Playground put to good use
The other day, resident RS Murthy, former president, Sector 2 Residents Welfare Association, was pleased to watch the BBMP playground on 19th Main-17th Cross junction being put to good use. “This is the correct usage of the ground. Look at the number of people using it,” he said, happy that it is not being used for cultural and religious functions like before.