Smart City measures leave pedestrians choked

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: Bengalureans have been enduring various inconveniences, as planners try to implement the ‘smart city’ projects across various parts of the city.

On Sunday, at Shivajinagar, two young workers from Bengaluru Smart City Limited (BSCL) were seen using air blowers to clear leaves and dust on the footpaths. While their intentions were laudable, the dust and debris was getting shifted from the footpath to adjoining roads. However, the story does not end here.

Under the impact of vehicles cruising on the road, a part of the leaves and dust returned to the footpath in a few minutes.

It was unclear as to what the workers were actually trying to do. Were they trying to clean the footpaths? If yes, then they have miserably failed. Wherever they went, the roads seemed to have become dustier, claim the motorists and pedestrians.

“These are busy roads and with the still unfinished development projects, the road has become narrow, increasing congestion. Also, it gets difficult to wait in the traffic jam owing to the dust,” said Mithun, who travels through the CBD every day. Instead of making the city ‘smart’, such a ham-handed approach will further aggravate the misery of pedestrians and motorists.