Road-cutting, footpath encroachment issues raised at meeting with West Corporation officials

Road-cutting by telecommunication companies, garbage collection, and footpath encroachments were among the issues raised by the Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) at a public meeting held in Malleswaram with the West Corporation officials on Saturday.

During the meeting, the associations welcomed the corporation’s paid parking plan, noting that it could help curb haphazard parking in the city. “Despite earlier doubts about the policy being anti-people, the kind of response received from resident welfare groups has given me the courage to move forward with the plan,” said Rajendra K.V., Commissioner of the West Corporation.

The public also raised concerns over road-cutting by the telecommunication companies, calling it a persistent problem.

Mr. Rajendra urged citizens to flag such illegal road-cutting on the spot.

“In most cases, companies would have already registered themselves on the MARCCS portal, committing a certain amount to support road reconstruction. If road cutting is carried out without permission, residents can forward a complaint to my office, and a criminal case will be filed against the offenders,” he said.

The residents further highlighted the issue of encroached footpaths. The Commissioner promised to create an inclusive footpath network across the corporation. “It would be helpful if citizens identified pedestrian footpaths that have been converted into vendor spaces and brought them to the notice of our office through the executive engineers,” he said.

The meeting also saw discussions on traffic management, the safety of women and children, feeding zones for stray dogs, and improving parks and play areas.