Battered roads, garbage dumps major issues for residents of Jankipuram in Lucknow

LUCKNOW Residents of Jankipuram, the city’s northern suburb, are yet to see the fruits of the promises made by corporators before the previous civic polls. Battered roads, encroachments, sewage, poor waste management and lack of street lights continue to be a major challenge that is yet to be addressed, say locals.

The area is spread over 6.34 sq km comprising several big residential colonies such as Sahara Estates and Jankipuram Extension Yojana, among others. Earlier having two wards, the area has now been expanded up to three i.e., ward 22 (Jankipuram ward-III), 31 (Jankipuram-I), and 74 (Jankipuram-II).

Locals have decided to vote for an independent candidate in order to express their discontentment over the “tall claims” made by corporators from various parties over the years.

“Residents of Sahara Estate under ward-II are dealing with some basic issues, and the contribution of people’s representatives has been minimal so far,” said IS Mishra, secretary, Sahara Estates. “Water enters the society from areas 7 km away. The district magistrate built a drain that was diverted from within the society. This is the primary cause of water-logging during the rainy season. Dog menace is a major issue that frequently affects senior citizens, children, and women,” he added.

“Approximately 5,000 registered voters have consistently voted in the same direction for many years. With none of the promises kept, we fielded an independent candidate, Vartika Gupta, 34, an MBA graduate. All the residents are campaigning for her with a clear message that we will no longer tolerate apathy towards our problems,” said Mishra.

As per the residents, poor quality roads, garbage heaps and lack of street lights is among the other big problems that the corporators and MLA have failed to address in five years. “Jankipuram is littered with garbage mounds that stink and are a source of disease. The roads are in poor condition, and the Lucknow Municipal Corporation and PWD are at odds over who has authority, causing repairs to be delayed or not completed at all,” said Vivek Sharma, a resident of ward-I.

“Roads were built by our area’s corporator, Seba Siddiqui, from his corporator’s fund in February this year. But the quality was so poor that they are now eroding. Street lights have also been stolen and have never been replaced,” said Nishant Ranjan, a resident of Janki Vihar of ward-I

“Several drinking water pipelines are broken, which leads to rainwater getting mixed with drain water, which we then use in our homes. A park in Sector J, surrounded by houses, has been turned into a graveyard, and we have received no assistance from the corporator,” said Brijesh Gupta, resident, ward-II.

Khushboo Rakhi Mishra, corporator, Jankipuram, ward-II (BJP)

“We have built roads, and fixed street lights. Two public toilets for women were set up from our corporator’s fund. Open garbage dumping sites have been covered. Beautification of a pond at Sahara Estate is under way.”

Sheba Siddiqui, corporator, Jankipuram, ward-I (SP), was unreachable for comment despite multiple attempts.