Erratic water supply tops litany of civic issues at Manorayanapalya

Residents at the event.

At the Janaspandana event on Saturday, residents of Manorayanapalya raised a litany of civic issues, with erratic drinking water supply topping the list.

Officials of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) faced the heat for the issues at the event, jointly organised by Prajavani and Deccan Herald.

Many complained that they were getting water only once in two days, while some said the pressure of water was so low that it was not reaching the first floor. “Please dig some borewells to ensure we get drinking water,” they demanded.

Abdul Wajid, the corporator at the BBMP council who represents the ward, took the BWSSB officials to task. “I’ve set a deadline of one month for the officials to fix the problems with regard to the Cauvery water supply,” Wajid said, adding that he was prepared to help the officials in issues relating to water supply. “I’ll ensure full cooperation in setting up infrastructure concerning water supply. If necessary, we’ll hold a meeting with the BWSSB chairman. All unfinished projects should be completed at the earliest.”

‘They demand money’

Residents of Bhuvaneshwari Nagar, Kauser Nagar, Dinnur Main Road, Venkatappa Block, Akbar Masjid Road and Chamundinagar said officials are demanding money to supply borewell water.

Shivaji Rao, a resident of Venkatappa Block, said he paid Rs 1.20 lakh to obtain the Cauvery pipe connection, but hardly gets water. “I don’t even get water twice a week,” he lamented. “How could we live if we get drinking water for just four hours a week?” Many in the audience echoed similar concerns.

A BWSSB official said many residents in the area have illegally drawn water from their pipes. “There are several unauthorised connections in the area, leading to a high amount of leakage. We’ve repaired the borewell dug by the erstwhile city municipality and have also taken steps to supply Cauvery water. But most of the houses haven’t taken connection by paying the fee. If more people take the water connection, we can supply water four days a week,” said the official.

Wajid said the whole area cannot be punished for the mistakes of a few. He also assured to help the economically weaker sections by facilitating water bill payments.

He said drilling more borewells is not the answer. “I can facilitate drilling of as many borewells as you want. But there’s no guarantee you’ll get water throughout the year since such arrangements are temporary. Getting a Cauvery water connection is the only solution.”

High-tech touch to double road

Giving details about the forthcoming infrastructure work in the ward, Wajid said the stretch of double road between the RT Nagar ACP office and Chaitanya Nursing Home will be made of cobblestone like Church Street.

“We’re also thinking about providing free WiFi and observe monthly open days by banning vehicular movements,” he said, adding that about 150 CCTV cameras are being installed at various places in the ward.

Unsafe for women and children

Residents living near Karnataka Medicals spoke about miscreants stalking women. Varalakshmi, a resident, said: “They sit in autorickshaws and pass lewd comments at women and girl students. If the residents object, they quarrel.”

Reacting to the problem, Kumar, a police official, said: “If residents raise an alarm, we’ll send the Hoysala (patrol) police in five minutes.”

Sajida Begum, a local resident, said: “Whenever the police come, the miscreants jump into our compound and disappear. We’re worried about our children. Sometimes, they even get to know about the Hoysala vehicles before it reaches the location.”

Many urged the police to increase the number of vehicles patrolling the area. Moinuddin, another resident, said many youngsters are resorting to substance abuse, including ganja.

“Police must install CCTV cameras,” Moinuddin said.

Resolve parking woes

Pointing at illegal parking in front of the houses, Mohammed Riyaz, a resident of the locality, said: “We don’t know who they are. But they just park the vehicles and disappear all through the day. We struggle to get our vehicles out and often go looking for the owners.” Acknowledging the problem, Wajid said he would instruct the traffic police to tow away such vehicles.