After two days of rain, road caves in

Karnataka : Bengaluru : 16/08/2017 . Road caved in on 1st cross J C Road near Poornima theatre in Bengaluru on 16th August 2017. Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

It was past midnight during the rain on Tuesday when the residents of Ramanna Garden and D’Souza Garden, near J.C. Road, heard a loud sound. In the morning the next day, they woke up to see the road leading to their locality caved in.

The residents, however, were not surprised. This is the third time a road near their locality has caved in. They blame it on the construction of a multi-storey commercial complex in the area. The foundation is being laid, for which the ground has been excavated.

A resident told

The Hindu that the private builder has not taken any measures to prevent damage to nearby areas. “This and the heavy rain in the city over the past two days have led to the road collapse.” However, this is yet to be verified by officials.

Another resident said that around two months ago, a few houses abutting one side of the site collapsed. “The builder then promised to rebuild the homes. Till now, nothing has been done. People who were living there are now forced to live in rented quarters,” she said.

Residents have started noticing cracks on their walls and the ground. “We are scared now. We don’t know what will happen next,” the resident said.

A BBMP official said the builder had taken plan sanction for the construction of an 11-storey complex. “The construction of basement is under way. We still need to ascertain if the road cave in was caused by of the construction or the heavy rain,” he said.