Bengaluru: “Too late. Ten minutes earlier, he might have been saved.” These words from the medical staff continue to haunt Gayathri Natarajan, who lost her father-in-law just two weeks ago. Despite rushing him in an ambulance, peak-hour traffic and the battered Varthur–Gunjur SH-35 road turned into a cruel barrier between life and death as he could not be taken to hospital in time.On Saturday, still holding back tears, Gayathri stood among hundreds of residents — children, seniors, and families— who gathered in silence near Prestige Lake Side Habitat and Candeur Signature Apartments on the Varthur-Gunjur Road in the Mahadevapura area. Their sole demand was something as basic as safe roads. Not just Gayathri and her neighbours, people joined peaceful demonstrations at multiple apartments in Varthur, Gunjur, Panathur, Balagere and Sarjapur-Dommasandra Road demanding pothole-free and dust-free roads. Commuters say it is a daily struggle to leave Varthur and reach other parts of the city, especially for those working on ORR, Old Airport Road, and Whitefield. Though the Karnataka Road Development Corporation Limited (KRDCL) had taken up widening work on SH-35 (which connects Shidlaghatta in the north to Anekal in the south), bottlenecks have become common as the road narrows to less than 30 metres through Varthur village and again at Gunjur. Moreover, the project has dragged on for the last six years and congestion has only fuelled commute-related fatigue, road rage and loss of lives.“My father-in-law had a health issue and I was trying to take him to the hospital, which is less than 3.5km from my apartment. But the ambulance was stuck in traffic on Varthur Road and reached 20 minutes late. Despite the siren, we couldn’t move. We lost a life only because the road failed us. Road widening has been happening for years now, can’t they at least fill up potholes?” said Gayathri, a resident of Prestige Lakeside Habitat.Even the alternative routes, the CBD Road and Panathur-Balagere Road, are in shambles. Families, IT employees, and schoolchildren using these roads, say they are left with “no single good road” to exit Varthur-Gunjur, making both daily commutes and emergencies a nightmare.Quotes:Renuka Narayan Swamy, resident of Prestige Lakeside Habitat We’ve been living here for six years, and not a single proper road exists to get out of Varthur. This is a state highway, yet it’s riddled with potholes and constant bottlenecks. Every day, we lose hours of our time and money because of this. It’s shameful. I vote here, I pay taxes here — I have every right to demand better roads.Om Prakash Jha, resident of VarthurIn my 40 years, this is the first time I’ve ever joined a protest. My wife and I deal with the terrible traffic and broken roads on Balagere–Panathur Road every day on our way to work — but today, I’m here for our children. The recent school bus accident shook us to the core. It’s terrifying to think that just sending our kids to school could put their lives at risk because of these dangerous roads.Gowdhaman Ponnusamy, General Secretary, RWA, Candeur Signature Apartment, Varthur We moved here mainly for the schools because we didn’t want our kids to travel long distances. This part of the city has some really good schools. But sadly, now it’s the kids who are stuck every morning on these broken roads. What we need are permanent fixes — not temporary patchesNaveen Venneti, resident of Prestige Lakeside Apartment What are we doing wrong that we can’t get better roads? We pay taxes like everyone else, yet our infrastructure only gets worse every day. The constant delays and traffic leave us so frustrated that we hardly have any time or energy left for our personal lives.—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-—-——INSET – 2 (to go With PIC)Bhargav, 5th grade student from Gunjur“Our roads are in really bad shape. The government says it’s facing many challenges, but from what I see, it looks like no one is fixing the roads. Our parents suffer, we suffer. This even affects my education — when I get to school, I’m exhausted. I can’t concentrate or learn properly. I feel like I haven’t slept for two days. It’s really bad. The Panathur underpass, for example, hasn’t been repaired in over a year. Have they forgotten about it?” INSET – 3 Standoff between residents & police Residents of Varthur and Gunjur organized protests against deteriorating road conditions and worsening traffic outside their apartment complexes. However, Varthur police intervened, stating that forming human chains or holding protests outside private residences is prohibited. They directed residents to hold demonstrations only at designated public spaces, such as Freedom Park, located 24 km away. With limited options, the residents instead staged peaceful protests along the carriageways within their apartment premises, holding placards to voice their concerns.
