Metro work on MG Road leaves behind a mess

BANGALORE: The ‘Namma Metro’ work in the city has been accepted with a pinch of salt. Probably the worst affected among all areas (where the Metro work has been undertaken) is MG Road which leads every commuter to a ‘several years back’ nostalgia moment. Be it the long traffic queues or the mud and the sand all over the road. But the general conjecture among all people is that the running of the metro would drive away all the hassles associated with the road presently.The work here does bring along with it rubble, sand, stones and rocks. But the commuters question the authorities on why a more systematic way of dealing with the situation hasn’t been adopted. With debris lying all around and pebbles strewn across the road, the risk of accidents has increased substantially.Under the Trinity Circle station, the wreckage puts travellers in a spot. A motorist on the road, Sheetal, voiced her grievances. She said, “I am a routine user of the road. The metro work brings along with it a wait of several minutes just to get through this particular of the road. But problems such as stones on the street and debris lying all around cause problems on a different scale. People like me, who drive two wheelers, automatically become more susceptible to accidents.” She further expressed her disappointment at materials disposed along the pavements and the newly constructed divider on MG Road.The dividers which have been built with a futuristic view of planting saplings and flowering plants are now covered with concrete debris. The BMRCL (Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited) chief engineer for the area Hegga Reddy, informed City Express that the disposal of the blocks was not the work of the metro officials but of miscreants upon whom a complaint has been registered at the Ashok Nagar Police Station. He asserted, “Construction materials from a nearby site were dumped here at night by some people. It was unauthorised. The metro work on MG Road is complete.”When questioned further about the inconvenience caused due to the stones on roads, he remarked, “Although tarring work, which is under completion, near the Trinity Circle station might be the cause for this, the problem will be handled better by the traffic cops who are present there.”