Erosion, wet walls are bane here

MANGALORE: Hoige Bazaar, the ward no. 57 of the Mangalore City Corporation, has problems in plenty. However, most problems are beyond redemption since it is outside the corporation’s purview barring the underground drainage, roads, stormdrains and garbage collection.
Erosion is the major problem affecting the ward. The south side of the ward lies near the estuary of Gurupur and Netravati river and is perennially erosionprone.The port deparment is carrying out the dyke works and works worth Rs 14 lakh have already been completed.
Another problem is the overflowing wet wells during the monsoon. As the two wet wells in this ward are in the low-lying areas, overflowing water is usually let into the open drains.
There have been complaints galore from residents of the well water being contaminated due to the faecal overflow and seepage into the ground. During the monsoon, usually residents have to clip their noses to live in the area.
This is due to the old, narrow underground drainage laid three decades ago, which is bursting at the seams to accommodate waste generated by the ever-growing population. As every corporator does, Hoige Bazaar corporator Murlidhar Bolar passes the buck on to the yet-to-be implemented Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Project.
He has recommended a larger underground pipeline from Fisheries College to Pandeshwar to overcome the problem. Another concern is the authorities’ callousness in killing a perennial water source. Of the 14 acres of Yemmekere pond, 60 per cent has been filled with mud and converted into a maidan.
Plans are afoot to extend maidan to the entire pond area. Bolar is flustered. He says that there were plans to set up an international swimming pool. “Since that has been shelved, I’ll persuade the authorities to retain the remaining five acres as a water source.’’ So far, residents of the area have never raised their voice against this kind of destruction.
May be, as this ward is in the low-lying area, they have never faced shortage of water even during power cuts. This ward also lacks civic sense in many areas. Roads are eroded due to the waste piled up on footpaths, which prevents rainwater from flowing into the drains.
Bolar has been educating the residents, but still his efforts don’t seem to have paid dividends. Daily garbage collection is ensured as Bolar tours the whole ward everyday to oversee garbage collection. Though roads are asphalted, narrow roads are the bane of the area.
Incidentally, the ward is the only ward which is under the purview of two MLAs — N. Yogish Bhat, Mangalore MLA, and U.T. Fareed, Ullal MLA. Population: 6,000 Voters: 4,300 Schools/Colleges: Jnanodaya Higher Primary School, Urdu School, Bolar, Zilla Panchayat High School, Hoige Bazaar, Joyland High School Religious places: Halekote Mariamma temple, Halekote Mukhyaprana temple, Bolar Jumma Masjid Police Station: Pandeshwar and Port KPTCL: Jeppu MLA: N. Yogish Bhat (Mangalore) and U.T. Fareed (Ullal) Corporator: Murlidhar Bolar (tel: 444116)