Residents of 8th phase JP Nagar still have no respite from the deep trenches dug by the BWSSB to lay water pipelines. Kapil Raizada, a resident of nearby H M World City had earlier written to Citizen Matters on this issue and the piece was published in the 9th April issue of Citizen Matters. The residents had a harrowing summer due to the dust kicked up due to the digging. The monsoon has added another kind of woe as the mud roads have turned slushy and with trenches dug up on the sides, they have become a hazard to commuters in the area.

One of the trenches dug up by the BWSSB for pipeline work. Pic: Yogaraj Mudalgi

K N Rajiv, executive engineer, BWSSB, overseeing the project had told Citizen Matters in April that the trenches would be closed within ten days as the pipelines were to be tested for pressure. When we contacted him again over the delay in finishing the project, he admitted that the project is causing much inconvenience to residents around. He attributed the delay to a severe shortage of potable water to finish testing the pressure in the pipelines. "To test each segment, it requires 1,50,000 litres of potable water. Since it was summer, such heavy requirement for water could not be fulfilled thus delaying the project."

Commuters are forced to travel on a narrow stretch of the road. Pic: Yogaraj Mudalgi

 To give a clear picture of the magnitude of the situation, he pointed out that a water tanker has a capacity of 6,000 litres. "Twenty-five such tankers are required to complete one test and there are two such tests left." He adds that they have been able to procure the required amount of water to conduct the tests and assured they will be finished by 20th June.

Kapil Raizada however remains skeptical. He says, "If the work was pending in just these two sections, why are they keeping the enitre section open, making it a hazard for commuters."

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