Bengaluru: Citizens openly confronted Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) West City commissioner KV Rajendra on the condition of Kanteerava Studio Road on Wednesday. A video of the face-off during a road inspection on Wednesday has gone viral.The war of words came days after a massive crater opened up on the already-damaged stretch between Surana College and Nandini Layout following heavy rain. The road surface appeared to have caved in along one edge of the carriageway, leaving behind a deep, water-filled cavity.The video shows Vivek C, vice-president of Yuva Ghataka Bengaluru Urban and a regular commuter on the stretch, speaking to the commissioner during an inspection of the road.Vivek told TOI he chance-met Rajendra and sought clarity on the timeline of pending repairs. “He told me he has been here only for a year. But that cannot be an excuse,” Vivek said. The commissioner allegedly responded in a very rude manner when he enquired about delay in fixing the road. “Aren’t these officials here to serve the public? Don’t we have the right to question them?” he said.Rajendra defended his actions and said while citizens’ frustration was justified, their behaviour during the confrontation was not. “I do take full responsibility and I’ll take action against one of our assistant executive engineers for failure in duty. But that does not give anyone the right to behave in such a manner, shout at officials or fall on moving vehicles,” Rajendra told TOI.The commissioner said he had personally inspected the road soon after taking charge of the zone last year, but the stretch had already been earmarked for white-topping, limiting the scope for major interim repairs. “Because the road was kept for white-topping, we could not do much. I was inspecting the stretch again and assessing what best could be done when this incident took place. We will take up work on Kanteerava Studio Road within the next two days, subject to weather conditions,” he said.Rajendra claimed West Zone office had not received any formal complaints regarding the road’s condition, a point disputed by local commuters who insist that they have repeatedly raised the issue with various authorities.However, Vivek said, “The stretch has been in a terrible condition for years. Neither the corporation nor MLAs or MPs have managed to permanently fix it. The latest crater was just the tipping point. No matter how many times people raise their voice, authorities remain quiet. Such roads are taking lives and putting hundreds of commuters in danger every day. This cannot be accepted.”
