Choosing residential localities closer to IT Parks, international schools, or reputed centres of learning does not always guarantee the best civic infrastructure. The residents of the IT corridor have realised this the hard way.
The lack of proper streetlights in Gachibowli and Kondapur not only force motorists to manoeuvre bad roads and incoming vehicles but also raise the issue of security.
One of the busiest roads in the mornings and evenings, the Gopanpally-Lingampally route is used by a number of IT employees. Though Gopanpally, which is situated in the backyard of the Indian Institute of Information Technology and University of Hyderabad, has developed leaps and bounds in the past decade, there are not even non-functional streetlights on the main road of the village.
Danger zone
“I travel from the financial district to my home in Nallagandla, and it is a nightmare most of the time,” said Vedula Krishna, an employee of a corporate company. “In the evenings, it is tough to drive after crossing Gopanpally village as the area becomes pitch dark. The stretch till Lingampally is in a bad state and commuters have to be careful to avoid accidents. A rider cannot even imagine travelling on this road if the vehicle’s headlights are not working.”
Similar conditions prevail in Kondapur on the Botanical Garden road. The residents even complained to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to install streetlights.
“The streetlights in this area were never installed on the road that runs about a kilometre,” said K. Mohan, an owner of a local eatery. “The roads are dug up most of the time by some government department or the other. What is the point of extending the road when it is not lit for the safety of the people. We have complained to the GHMC as well as public representatives, but no action has been taken till now.”
When enquired about the issue, the concerned officer of the GHMC said that they are waiting for a final decision on installing LED lights.
“We have received complaints from residents and commuters of those areas after which we prepared proposals to install streetlights. The proposals are under process and the decision regarding replacing the existing lights with LEDs will be taken soon. Since taking up work at this stage will lead to unnecessary wastage of money and resources, there is a delay in lighting up these areas,” said D. Nagaraju, Deputy Executive Engineer, Circle 11, GHMC.
