MP Tejasvi Surya’s initiative to ease congestion and improve social distancing
BENGALURU:
Tejasvi Surya, Member of Parliament from Bengaluru South, on Friday ensured the shifting of a part of the operations of the KR Market to National College Grounds in Basavanagudi for better implementation of social distancing in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Surya inspected the market on Friday morning along with Chickpet MLA Uday Garudachar and senior police officials, and found the social distancing measures inadequate. He requested the police and BBMP officials to ease the congestion by having the market operate from National College grounds, Basavanagudi, from 5 am to 10 am. Similarly, he pushed for the Sarakki Market in JP Nagar to operate from the Jaraganahalli grounds. Saturday onwards, both the markets, which are the hubs of the city’s vegetables and fruits supply, will operate from the National College grounds and the Jarganahalli grounds respectively.
Referring to the PM’s call for social distancing, Surya said, “What we saw on Friday was a crowd of people flocking to the KR Market. It was just chaos. People were coming from far-off areas like Vijayanagar, Mysore Road and Chandra Layout. This overcrowding is a serious threat to the health of all the citizens of not just Bangalore but also the whole country.”
Surya said that while India has not yet shown clear signs of being in the third stage, the situation can escalate drastically if citizens do not act responsibly right now.
“The government is doing its part by addressing the challenge in a very dynamic manner. On my part, I have set up a Bengaluru South Coronavirus Task Force in collaboration with the police. Trained volunteers will assist senior and needy citizens with tasks such as obtaining groceries, milk, medicine and food. All one has to do is dial 99464 99464, and volunteers closest to the location will take your request and ensure it is done,” he said.
“We also have access to psychologists and experts who you can contact. I urge the citizens of Bengaluru South to utilise this helpline and minimise their contact with the outside world,” he said.
The Task Force helpline is 99464 99464.
