Never-ending white topping work in Gandhi Bazaar leaves vendors high and dry

BENGALURU: The Ugadi festival is just round the corner, but the situation of the Gandhi Bazaar Main Road has remained pathetic for the last six months due to the never-ending work on white topping, drainage and footpath.

Street vendors are suffering without business while shop owners are incurring loss. The traders had hoped that the work will be completed before Ugadi and were hoping for some good business, but seems to be no sign of the works being completed before the stipulated time.

Gandhi Bazaar main road wears almost a deserted look due to the ongoing work.

The Directorate of Urban Land Transport (DULT) has taken up renovation of the 900-metre-long stretch of Gandhi Bazaar at a cost Rs 40 crore. On the pretext of developing this road like Church Street, the 80-feet-road has been converted into a 22-feet-wide road. The earlier 13-foot-wide footpath has been increased to 35 feet, and, with the work continuing, the lives of the traders and street venders have been affected.

Suresh, a shopkeeper, said, “The construction work is going on for the last six moths and we have kept our shop closed after the work started here. There is dust all around. We staged protest, requested the government to stop this construction, but none of the officials or elected representatives are ready to hear our pleas. All entry points were closed and there was no way for to customers to come in. Every trader on this road is facing problems due this unwanted white-topping work”.

Fruit seller Rajesh, said, “We are earning nothing since the work started. Business has completely collapsed and I am incurring a loss Rs 1 lakh this month. The same is the case with flower sellers. Customers are not coming as there is no parking space”.

MLA Uday Garudachar said, opposition will be there for every new project.

Chickpet Assembly Constituency MLA Uday Garudachar said, “There will be opposition to every new project. Almost 90 per cent of the people are supporting the revamp, but the remaining 10 per cent are opposing it. We had put up a design of the Gandhi Bazaar makeover and invited public objections, but no one objected. At present, two-wheelers are allowed and a multi-level car park is coming up. It is mainly the street vendors who are affected by this construction work, but the road will be open to the public in a month”.