Potholes even on roads outside PM's residence, Karnataka being targeted unfairly: DK Shivakumar

DK Shivakumar

With residents in Bengaluru routinely appealing to the state government to fix city's crumbling road infrastructure, Karnataka deputy chief minister DK Shivakumar on Monday defended state government’s handling of Bengaluru’s battered roads, claiming civic teams are filling “thousands of potholes per day” despite heavy rain.

“I toured Delhi yesterday. The media should see how many potholes there are on the Prime Minister’s residence road,” he told reporters, adding that poor roads are a nationwide problem. “I want to tell big IT companies these potholes are everywhere. But we have to do our duty to close them. This is the system across India. The media is showcasing it as only Karnataka. Why would roads be this way if BJP could have done it better?

Karnataka deputy chief minister last week dismissed worries about companies threatening to leave Bengaluru, saying the government was “least bothered about threats or blackmailing.” He highlighted the city’s talent pool, over 25 lakh engineers and about two lakh foreign professionals, as proof of its continued global appeal.

Explaining how the civic authorities are working to fix the ensuing problems, said Shivakumar contractors have been given a final deadline to fill potholes by November and announced Rs 1,100 crore for citywide road repair and construction. “Since our goal is a clean Bengaluru and smooth traffic movement, GBA will ensure that potholes are cleared at the earliest,” he added.

Meanwhile, the opposition BJP has planned a state-wide protest on September 24 against poor road conditions in Karnataka, particularly Bengaluru. Bengaluru's bad roads have led the BJP to announce a state-wide protest on September 24, with plans to block roads across all 224 Assembly constituencies in Karnataka. State BJP President B Y Vijayendra made the announcement on Sunday to rally against what the party called the alarming state of the roads, particularly in Bengaluru, citing widespread public dissatisfaction over crumbling road infrastructure.