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| One of the decrepit Bhopal roads |
I
happen to live on the Ridge Road located on that part of the Idgah Hills which
overlooks the famed but now-decaying Upper Lake of Bhopal. While the view from
the windows is exquisite the approach to the complexes like ours or the
newly-built billion rupees bungalows is horrid. In my 22 years of living in
this flat I have hardly ever seen the road in good repair. Whenever patchy
repairs were carried out they never survived a bout of rain. And for years it has
remained in its decrepit and crumbling state with the residents remaining in
the hope that at the time of elections of councillors perhaps the road would be
attended to. For at least ten years now this has not happened.
After
the last elections the newly elected Mayor happened to visit the road and
promised to make such a good road of it that people would be able to use it as
a dining plate and dine right off it. More than three years have since gone by
but t residents are yet to see the surface of a dinner plate; in fact we have
only seen the road progressively deteriorating with far greater numbers of
ditches than seen any time before. The councilors are indifferent as indeed the
Mayor. So far no signs are visible of any repair work of the road. It is
understood that a few times contracts for the work were awarded but the
contractors ditched it and disappeared without carrying out the work. Perhaps,
their tenders were so low that the contractors later realized that they would
be left with any margin on construction of this hilly road after paying the
cuts of the officers and councilors.
I,
for one, am unable to use this only approach to my flat unless I am in a vehicle.
Long time ago, at least now it seems so, I used to take my constitutionals on
this road. But then I was younger and my bones were perhaps stronger. Now a few
steps here and the joints creak and at every step there is the fear of a sprain
in the ankle, jagged stones-strewn as the road is.
Thus
a very important source of my wellbeing has been taken away from me by the
negligence apathy of the government-sustained municipal corporation and its
councilors and the Mayor. Thay are responsible for keeping me unhealthy and,
hence, unhappy. The government, however, is touting its Happiness Department
that is having a ball with tours abroad. They are reported to be looking for
ways and means for extending happiness to the citizens of the city. Why doesn’t
it occur to them that people will derive happiness if only the functionaries of
the municipal corporation – elected and unelected – did their work sincerely,
effectively and honestly? The chief minister has been shouting from the roof
tops about “su-sashan” (good governance) in order to make people happy.
Surprisingly it does not appear to have occurred to him that rendering
effective public services to people is an important component of “su-sashan”.
It
looks like that the time has now come that people need not depend on the
government or its agencies for receiving essential services. They may have to
take the bull by the horn and fill the staring gaps left by the local
administration in the matter of road building by themselves. Newspapers have already
reported instances where people have started building their colony roads by eliciting
contributions from the residents. Clearly, this municipal body and the
government cannot be depended upon for such services. The residents of Ridge
Road may also have to do likewise and cut the municipal corporation from their
lives at least in this respect.
*Photo from internet
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