by Kiran Kulkarni
Smart city does not happen only by infrastructure but by the will and zeal of the people with more civic sense.
Stayed in Belgavi for a month and found neither has improved. Infrastructure nor civic sense.
Lot of construction activity with terrible dump and debris on the roadside, blocking the already tiny roads. Roads with terrible potholes and hence not prepared for the monsoon.
Traffic is intolerable and very badly managed. Driving on the wrong side and parking on the wrong side is as though become a right to the careless public. Honking for no reason is adding to the already existing traffic woes. Rickshaw wallas can drive at full speed on any side of road with overload of passengers than the permitted limit and can give you ferocious looks when objected. When I asked a rickshaw walla to take U turn rather than drive on wrong side he said” petrol kaay sarkar denaar”. Most of the time, there is a lot of chaos, because of the absence of the policeman. When the policeman is on duty, he is mostly busy with his smartphone.
Children below 18 years can be seen everywhere riding a scooter, in spite of so many teenage fatalities. And the sad part is when parents are proud to say their teenage children do drive.
Garbage can be seen everywhere on the side of the road. People can’t go one feet forward to ensure the garbage is dropped in the bin provided. Sadly, people do not want to pay the Rs 50 per month to the garbage collector and hence come out in the nights to dump waste on the roadside.(As seen)
The worst part is people are not bothered bcos ” mazha kaay jaatay” and “Belgaum madhe sagla chaaltay” attitude still persists.
A market police officer was transferred at the insistence of an MLA and nobody fought for him. Honest people won’t survive if public doesn’t come forward and support.
Come on Belgaumities , You all need to improve to make city better, clean, organized, fight for your rights. It all starts with you and me. Don’t come out in large numbers only on happening of mishaps, accidents or severe injustice. It’s good to be organized and civic minded daily.
Education does not mean only degrees. Don’t let Belagavi be an educational hub with no basic education.