White topping work at Gandhi Bazaar leads to a steep fall in footfall

Bengaluru: There are still tens of thousands of individuals who frequent the shopping areas in a developing city because they offer a distinctive shopping experience. Yet because of the BBMP's continuous white topping work on the main road, which has been going on for six months, traders are dissatisfied with the business because footfall has significantly decreased.

Due to the fact that the main road in Gandhi Bazar has been dug up on both sides, pedestrians must balance cautiously over a pile of dirt and debris. Traffic jams frequently cause great trouble for those travelling by car from Ramakrishna Ashrama circle to DVG Road since they must take a detour.

"During the past month, there has been a 40% decrease in walk-in customers. Potential customers avoid a business during the rainy season because they do not want to wade through puddles, which results in a significant loss for the business. The business is considerably better now that it's sunnier," said Lalitha, who owns a cosmetics shop on the street.

"Because of the road work, which has been going on for months, many people have stopped visiting Gandhi Bazaar. Many stores here have suffered losses as a result of this. We have only recently begun to recover from the losses brought on by the pandemic," said a flower vendor.

"BBMP significantly narrowed the road and expanded the footpath area. The footpath has not yet been finished, despite the white topping being finished. The roads are really dusty, and some elderly people I know have respiratory problems," added a resident of Gandhi Bazar.

"There are trees in Gandhi Bazar that are over 75 years old, which helps to manage the water table extremely effectively. The trees will also suffer from this white topping treatment. The old Bengaluru may be seen in Gandhi Bazar. We're not against modernization, but they should give us the proper facilities instead of spending money on white topping," remarked another resident of the area.

According to the current plan, a Multi-Level Car Park (MLCP) with a capacity of about 180 automobiles would be constructed in the vicinity of the market. The lower and upper ground floors will include shops for traders while four stories will be set aside for parking. The government intends to spend Rs 20 crore to establish 47 shops.

In the meantime, the Bruhat Bangalore MahanagaraPalike (BBMP) was told not to take any precipitous action at this time by the High Court of Karnataka, based on the public notice that was issued on February 22 asking the occupants of shops at the BBMP's market complex in Gandhi Bazar to vacate the premises within seven days.