Most roads in Salt Lake are plunging into darkness after sunset because a majority of the street lights have stopped working.
In Salt Lake’s three sectors, there are street lights every 20-25m on the main roads and the roads that criss-cross every block. A majority of these lights — some of which had been converted to LED — have stopped working.
Several residents said they think twice before walking or driving down these stretches at night as the lack of street lights can aid snatchers and other petty criminals.
The Telegraph drove and walked through various blocks in all three sectors of Salt Lake at night and found most lanes and even some arteries in darkness.
The road that connects the Chingrihata intersection with Salt Lake’s EE Block, which runs parallel to the eastern drainage canal, has less than six functional street lights.
This road connects every block in Salt Lake, including EE, FE, KB, KC, IC and several housing complexes, including Jal Vayu Vihar and Mahavir Vikas housing complexes.
Driving or walking down this 4km-long road is risky as it is nearly impossible for cars with their headlights off to spot a pedestrian or vehicle.
To add to commuters’ worries, construction material like concrete blocks, sand and iron rods are scattered on the sides of the road for the ongoing Airport-New Garia Metro Railway construction. There are several potholes and dud wires lying across the road, too.
The service road that leads to Netaji island near Central Park from the Bidhannagar Municipal School in FE Block is poorly lit as well. Most street lights are not functional and those that work are covered by canopies of tall trees that line the stretch.
Priyanka Chandani, an FE Block resident, said many areas in her block have perpetually been in the “dark zone” because of non-functional lights.
“We try to avoid walking down these lanes at night. Anybody might accost us,” she said.
In Sector I, too, large stretches of the road along the Kestopur canal are completely dark. “We have sent several letters to the Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation but no action has been taken,” said Bhaskar Ganguly, an AE Block resident.
In HA and FF blocks, residents said half the street lights were defunct and the others were not bright enough to light up the area.
“The street light near my house is so dim that it is nearly useless,” said Anirban Ganguly, a resident of FF Block.
A senior official of the civic body’s lights and maintenance department said that they had carried out a survey of the areas where lights had stopped working. “The engineers have been directed to carry out a survey where the lights need to be repaired or replaced,” he said.
