Haveri
The Ranebennur-Guttal-Devaragudda road on the Masur-Mundaragudi state highway has become a bottleneck for vehicle traffic due to potholes. Fed up with this, bullock cart drivers have vented their anger against the government by filling the potholes at their own expense.
There are large depressions on the road between Goulera Oni and Kanchgara Oni. The water stagnates during the rains. Bullock cart porters, who travel along this route every day, were facing problems.
Locals had repeatedly requested the Public Works Department, municipal officials, and public representatives to fill the potholes on the road. Officials, citing incessant rains and lack of funding, were postponing the pothole-filling work.
Fed up with this, the porters have been collecting money from each other to fill the potholes and condemning the authorities and the negligent attitude of the authorities in various ways.
The porters loaded red soil from Hunasikatati Road into bullock carts and brought it to the road between Goulera Oni and Kanchgara Oni, where they poured it over the pothole. Then, they leveled the soil and closed the pothole.
Locals are expressing appreciation for the work of the porters. The porters have done a job that local MLA Prakash Koliwada, municipal council representatives, public works department officials, other department officials and people’s representatives have not done.
Traders who buy agricultural produce at Nehru Market are transporting it to warehouses through bullock cart porters.
“We have been transporting bags of soybeans, name, and other products to the warehouse for many years. Due to the bad road, it was difficult to carry the bags to the warehouse. Half of the money we earned was spent on repairing the bullock carts. Therefore, we ourselves brought 8 trips of soil from farmers on the Hunaseekatti road and filled the potholes on the road,” said porters Chandru, Nagappa, and Hanumantha.