Bengaluru apartment residents fix potholes themselves after repeated pleas to BBMP go unheard

Residents of BM Pristine Apartments in Bengaluru took action on Independence Day, repairing potholes after months of ignored complaints to BBMP.

Fed up with civic apathy, residents of BM Pristine Apartments in Bengaluru’s Gunjur-Varthur-Balagere belt took matters into their own hands on Independence Day. After months of complaints to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) went unanswered, the group, comprising mostly IT professionals, gathered with shovels and gravel to patch up the cratered road outside their complex.

Residents of Bengaluru apartment fix potholes for themselves.

Take a look at the video

Videos of the unusual protest quickly spread on social media, showing residents working together to fill potholes that had long posed a risk to commuters. Many described it as their symbolic way of asserting independence from a negligent civic body.

A local X handle, Namma Belagere, shared the video with the caption: “IT professionals from Bengaluru’s IT hub filled potholes on their own post #IndependenceDay celebrations. Repeated requests to officials have fallen on deaf ears. The infra here is broken & no one cares.”

In one of the videos, a resident who filmed the effort said, “This shows that when intent is right, people will step up and solve problems themselves. On Independence Day, BM Pristine residents fixed their own road because the authorities continue to ignore this area.”

The move sparked a wave of reactions online, with many slamming BBMP for neglecting the fast-growing IT corridors of East Bengaluru. “The only way forward is for residents to enroll as voters, meet their representatives in large groups, and hold them accountable,” one user wrote. Another remarked, “Software hubs in Bengaluru and Pune are no better than urban slums. No greenery, no parks, no basic infra.”

Some demanded accountability from civic officials, with one user saying: “Everyone responsible for these roads should resign. Shame on them. Residents should even get a tax rebate for fixing roads out of their own pocket.” Others, however, questioned why buyers invest in projects in poorly developed areas, arguing that stronger market pressure on builders and the government could have pushed for better infrastructure.