A petrol station that has become a landmark in South Bangalore will soon be pushed in to oblivion thanks to the Metro
A petrol station that has become a landmark in South Bangalore will soon be pushed in to oblivion thanks to the Metro
The 75-year old Kaveri Petrol Bunk near Lalbagh West Gate is going.
Thanks to the Metro, the station will be reduced to a smaller station with a single tank supplying petrol.
This only because the Metro alignment crosses it diagonally.
B Vu00a0 Williams, a retired army man, took over the bunk in 1977. In its golden days, the bunk used to sell 21,000 litres of petrol and 15,000 litres of diesel a day. Now sales have been reduced to 12,000 litres and 8,000 litres respectively.
|
|
Another one bites the dust: Workers and bull-dozers raze the Kaveri Petrol Bunk near Lalbagh to rubble. This marks the end of another heritage property in the city pics/Ramesh HS |
"Once the demolition is complete, it will come down further with only a single tank to serve petrol," said Williams.
"Many of our customers have expressed concern, but I am reassuring them that the bunk will continue to serve them," he said. Williams has alsou00a0 decided to ask the BMRCL for space between two pillars of the metro alignment.
However, N Sivasailam, managing director, BMRCL, ruled out the possibility saying, "We cannot allow any establishment within the area of 25 metres from the centre of the alignment."
Many celebrities were among the South Bangaloreans who were loyal customers of the bunk. Film star Vishnuvardhan and IT czar N R Narayanamurthy are a few.
"It was almost a heritage spot for us," said a regular customer, who lives in Basavanagudi. "The bunk was also famous for good service and unadulterated fuel supply. The idea of the demolition hurts me," he said.
L Vasudevamurthy, a social worker in the sameu00a0 area said, "It is not the question of commercial loss, but we are concerned about the social and cultural dislocation. We are not able to conserve our heritage as we grow andu00a0 develop."
"When we could not even save Lalbagh, why talk about a petrol bunk," said T N Seetharam, a famous TV serial director, who is also a frequent customer at the bunk. "Development that destroys a social set up is not development at all," he added.
"I used to see film stars daily and I am going to miss that," said a young attendant at the bunk, summing up the general feeling of loss.
