Despite Many Calls, DDA Hasn’t Fixed Road Outside my Son’s School

‘If one has to wait over a year for a small problem to be rectified, where are we heading?’

For the last two years, the Sri Ram Global School (SRGS) says they have been doing everything they can to get the road repaired outside the school, located in West Delhi’s Tikri Kalan.

Currently the road is in bad shape, with big potholes and uneven speed breakers, that cause water logging during the monsoon. Students have been facing these issues on a daily basis. My son, who studies in Class two, is one of them.

I have been a witness to this problem for the last one-and-a-half years now. The school has been telling us that they have already spoken to the concerned officers and departments and are trying their level best to get the work done at the earliest. So, where’s the lax?

On 27 July we went to the school to attend an event and were taken aback at seeing the road’s condition. From that day itself, I decided to pursue the case myself and find out the reason for the delay in the repair work.

SRGS has been giving regular reminders to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal (along with pictures of the road) to seek his intervention, but in vain. They have even met him twice. I have also started to tweet to him, the PMO handle etc using all sorts of possible hashtags. Nothing seems to catch their attention.

I also spoke to the PWD, but they said the road is under the DDA. Due to a long delay in transferring the file to them, the work has been delayed. But that is just the short answer.

One of the PWD personnel gave me the number of a DDA official who could help me, but when I called him up, he told me he has been transferred and is no longer associated with the case.

Then, I got another reference from him. By the end of it all I’d called four to five people and offices to get a road fixed.

I finally got through to Mr Bansal (Assistant Engineer), who was the person in charge, but he told me that the repair work would take some time but it is already in process.

When I insisted to know a realistic timeline, he asked me to speak to Mr Siddhant Kashyap (executive engineer), who in turn directed me to Mr AK Aggarwal (chief engineer) who would help answer my queries.

I had to call his office three or four times, and even threaten them that I would take this to the media or post about them if they won’t let me speak to him. Finally, on 5 August, they agreed to help me find the file.

She later said Mr Aggarwal is new in the system but has asked for the complaint to be fast-tracked to the next level (not aware what level that is).

I was promised that the designated officer will go to the site in a few days and will take quick action. I recorded these few calls as proof of their promises.

It is unfortunate the matter came to a threat. I am not sure how effective was either, but as a helpless parent, I had no other option. Is there no respect for a common man? Does only money or power work?

I realised that the common citizen needs to exert constant pressure to get something done. After multiple follow ups, numerous calls from one person to another, I just hope my calls have made the authorities realise that we won’t take the matter lightly.

It is disappointing to learn that officials have just been passing the buck. “I am not the concerned person”, “that person got transferred “, “call xyz”, is all I heard in my attempts.

I wanted the repair work to start this month itself, but it will not happen if we sit quietly.

As a parent I feel disgusted to know that one has to deal with so many people in a single department, even threaten them to know the status of an issue, and still not get a positive answer at the end of the day. It feels worse because the issue is about school children whose health is at stake. They go to school which is surrounded with dirty water, making it a breeding ground for mosquitoes and diseases.

If a school, that is nurturing future leaders, has to wait a year for a small (yet urgent) problem to be rectified, then one can understand where we are heading.

(The Quint reached out to the assistant engineer, the area in-charge, who has said that the tender is being processed and the work will begin soon.)

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