By Kalki, a concerned citizen
As Mysureans are gearing up to soak in Dasara festivities, the official and political machinery are also gearing up for the annual ritual of last-minute hasty and hotchpotch repair works on potholed roads and broken pavements, draining tax-payers money with poor workmanship and absolute lack of accountability. With just 25 days to go for the ceremonial inauguration of Dasara on Oct. 10, this Weekend Star Supplement presents a sorry state of Mysuru with gaping holes on footpaths, waste dumped indiscriminately around the Mysore Palace and broken balustrades on Raja Marga. Ironically, the government has declared that it aims to draw thousands of tourists from across the globe for Dasara-2018. Take a look.
Missing railings, pedestrian-unfriendly footpaths, potholed roads…
Are we prepared for Dasara ?
The world-famous Nada Habba (State Festival) Dasara is just 25 days away. With millions of people, delegates and media personnel from across the globe expected to descend on Mysuru to celebrate and be a part of this spectacular festival, one question that strikes a common man or a pedestrian in city is: Are we really prepared for Dasara?
If you are a resident of Mysuru, you might have witnessed the fictitious effort of Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) whose officials scramble to repair and maintenance of roads and infrastructure just prior to the start of the festivities.
It is a ritualistic affair and every year the official machinery, headed by their political bosses, gets on to the streets to repair broken footpaths, railings and fill potholes.
Every year, the works which were due and supposedly meant to be completed before the previous Dasara itself does not get completed even after one year.
The Palace Main Gate offers the best example for people to realise the annual ritual of Dasara repair works. Poor quality of work, coupled with official apathy and absolute lack of accountability have reduced the city to its present state.
Year-on-year, officials and elected representatives rattle out that so many crores of rupees have been released for Dasara works. Along with the release of money, deadlines are set for the works to complete. But each year, the deadlines are violated and even when the works are declared complete, there are complaints from the public about sub-standard work.
Classic examples of incomplete and sub-standard works are the Raja Marga balustrades, gaping holes on the footpaths of prestigious Jumboo Savari Route, broken tiles on footpaths and of course, the incomplete works of the Town Hall.
Seeing the ritualistic annual drama of “Dasara Works”, one wonders why the works are carried out every year. Do the completed works last only for one year? Instead of carrying out repair works every year, why not work out a long-term policy wherein a mandatory rule is made that the repair works should last at least for three years? If the works do not last three years, why not a rule that will blacklist such contractors and officials? These are some of the questions that come into the minds of Mysureans who witness this annual drama.
Picture shows a section of K.R. Circle where the ornamental pillars have crumbled like a pack of cookies. These broken pillars disrupt the smooth movement of pedestrians.
Nightmare for pedestrains
While most of the tourists and locals would love to explore or commute through this beautiful city on foot, they are greeted by collapsed footpaths, lack of zebra crossings, locked subways of which the walls are sprayed with gutkha and betel leaf stain.
Footpaths are not wheelchair-friendly or safe for commoners and the safety of the commuters are at stake.
This is the plight of Sayyaji Rao Road. It is a death pit adjacent to City Bus Stand where thousands of people walk on the footpath to either take buses or reach their destinations on foot. One wrong move on this road and you are bound to lose a limb or two. For the record, these are concrete slabs and crores of rupees have gone down the drain.
Broken and potholed roads
We don’t live in a geographical area which is susceptible to natural calamities. Yet our roads tell a different kind of a story. With some exceptions, the roads in and around the city can be well defined as mud roads with potholes and patches of tar. Even the route on which the Dasara procession glides has potholes and are broken at many places.
The Chamaraja Circle through which the Dasara procession passes. These are not roads but mud roads with patches of asphalt and potholes.
Abysmal information broadcast
Dasara pumps crores of rupees into the local economy which in turn help the locals prosper. But due to lack of promotional activities and information deficiency, the footfall for the events are badly affected.
Apart from the customary “Poster Release” ritual that is a photo opportunity for officials and the political class, nothing much is done regarding publicising the event. All the publicity is restricted to Mysuru without touching other parts of the country.
The Bengaluru-Nilgiri Road. One of the wide roads near the Palace where people can take a walk or stroll around enjoying the aesthetics of the surroundings. This road was a part of the Raja Marga beautification project. Seeing the collapsed concrete railings and balustrades little is left to imagine where the money went. Compare these substandard structures with the structures that have been built by the Maharajas. Those structures have withstood for years.
Missing railings
The stone railings or balustrades erected just a couple of years ago under the much touted “Raja Marga Works” (that began in 2010) around the Mysore Palace and on the path of Dasara procession have been destroyed and uprooted at many places.
It was the ambitious project of the MCC under the Rs. 100-crore special grant sanctioned by the State Government to give a royal touch to the Jumboo Savari route. Among the features proposed under the project were sculptures resembling elephants carrying “ambari”, royal images, heritage lamp-posts that once adorned the streets during the time of the erstwhile princely state and beautification of footpaths with Italian tiles.
Picture shows another section of the same stretch where the pillars have collapsed. Circles like Chamaraja Circle and K.R. Circle are unique to Mysuru and not everywhere tourists can see such masterpieces that reflect the heritage of a region. Unfortunately, such circles are not well maintained by the Mysuru City Corporation that stages an annual ritual of Dasara Works.
The Raja Marga works are in a shambles now. Seems a bit odd as even the structures that are centuries old in and around the Palace are in a sound condition and will last a couple of centuries more. The ancient and still strong structures built by the Maharajas stand in stark contrast with the structures that are a couple of years old and that have been commissioned by the Mysuru City Corporation.
The Raja Marga project cost multiple crores of rupees but looks as if they are the ruins of a deserted city. There are even many such problems as the sprawling site around the Palace is being used as a dump yard.
The iconic K.R. Circle that is a shoppers’ paradise and a business hub. The Circle houses shops that sell affordable clothes, footwear to exquisite gold, platinum and diamond jewellery. This is a place that has constant movement of people and vehicles and even here, the concrete balustrades have fallen like pieces of melting ice.
Zero maintenance scheme
Special thanks to incompetent, corrupt officials and lack of interest from people’s representatives in monitoring the infrastructural developments and maintenance, the government funds aren’t being utilised wisely. Bad or no maintenance scheme which are practised by the authorities call for relook and revamp that will make a significant impact on government treasury.
The famous Kote Bisilu Maramma Temple surroundings used as a dump yard. This uncontrolled dumping of garbage is marring the beauty of the city centre. The beauty of the fort and the Palace is overshadowed by dirt and muck.
Will delay in payments affect this Dasara ?
If one probes the annual ritual of “Dasara Works” one of the reasons behind sub-standard works is non-payment of dues. As part of Dasara works, the MCC engages contractors to accept tenders and complete the works. But the MCC never pays the contractors on time and they will have to wait for over two years for the payments to be cleared.
Due to the delay in payments by the government, the contractors who take up various works during Dasara celebrations are put into a lot of hardship. Contractors say that even the payments for the works undertaken in 2016 have not been released. They say that due to the inordinate delay, they lose profits apart from incurring huge losses.
This is next to Palace South Gate, the welcoming view for millions of tourists who descend on the city every day. This place is a hub of activity during Dasara and see what we have reduced it into.
In 2017, the Dasara High-Powered Committee had sanctioned a budget of Rs. 15 crore. Later, the government pegged the expenditure to Rs. 9 crore and chose to release only Rs. 4 crore and has not released the remaining Rs. 5 crore. Many times, Mysuru Deputy Commissioner who is also the Dasara Special Officer wrote to the government but the funds are yet to be released. “This delay has hurt us the most. Last year, we were asked to complete the works on a war-footing but when it comes to payments, the officials have no answers. We have borrowed money to complete the works and we are suffering because of the State apathy,” said a contractor.
This year too, the scene will be no different regarding the delay in payments. At the last Dasara High-Powered Committee meeting, headed by CM H.D. Kumaraswamy, it was decided to clear pending payments as the authorities feel that contractors may not come forward to carry out works if the last year’s payments were not released. But the payments have not yet reached the work contractors, it is learnt.
A view of K.R. Market South Gate where there is no facility for the physically challenged to move on their wheelchairs. The fallen concrete pillars have been converted into seating structures by vendors who sell flowers. After flower vendors leave, the place is occupied by youths who chat over a cup of tea.
Typical third world city!