Fix My Street app by BBMP does not work as Android users can’t register on the app; BBMP is clueless.
Fix My Street application launched by the Bruhut Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) does not function as people cannot register on the app. BBMP official says they don’t own the app and have no clue why it is not working.
Chief of Information Technology (IT) Department of BBMP said that he does not know anything about this app and it is not owned by BBMP. He added that someone else developed this app whose link they have posted on BBMP’s official website. BBMP does not have any knowledge if it is working or how many users use it. He said that he does not know who takes care of this app and of the complaints filed via the app.
A total of 1,220 people have rated this app with 1.4 stars out of five on Google Play Store. Anitha Shekhar, a user of the app said that the app does not respond. She said, “The location detection in the app is illogical as it shows world map when the app is made for Bengaluru.” She added that it is disappointing that apps are in such a condition in the IT hub of the country.
Another user, Debanshu Kundu said that the app only allows clicking pictures without registration but doesn’t allow them to be uploaded. The registration process doesn’t work on the app. “The complaints are rejected without providing any reasons,” he added.
Some users have also complained of the app being non-compatible with the latest versions of Android. Complaints cannot be raised.
Also, this application is only available on Play Store, iPhone users cannot download this app on their device.
Gautam Kaushal, a software engineer said that the platform fees for App Store are very high hence, a lot of apps are not available on App Store. This is most likely to be the case for this app also.
The app when initially launched in 2017, had some bugs due to which it was later closed in 2019 and was only available for BBMP officials. The same app was relaunched on Jan. 7, 2023 and is still not working. The app aimed to make the city cleaner. People could register on the app and click photos of the potholes. The app was designed to detect the location of the pothole and direct it to the responsible engineer for its resolution.
BBMP authorities said that they will find out who the developer is. They have no data of the number of complaints filed through the app and how many have been resolved.
However, according to information available on Play Store, this app is developed by Indigo Information Systems Pvt Ltd which is a Platform and Product company. The company focuses on providing companies with solutions and the technology expertise to address business challenges.
Gautam said that one major reason for app not functioning is the negligence in maintenance on the part of engineers. Government apps are first created in order to attract the public, but are not maintained in the long run. This lack of maintenance makes it hard for users to use it due to bugs. If bugs are not fixed soon, the app eventually stops responding.
Mr. Vikram Bhat, Principal Architect and Urban Designer said, “On Google Maps the street is being shown and in the street one can embed photos of potholes and tag authorities saying that this road has potholes or one can create one more layer and say that there are potholes on so and so street and tag authorities.”
He worries that the app might crash because many users log on to it.
Mr. Bhat also suggested a traditional method, that one can take maps from Survey of India, streets are shown in these maps and along the street you can mark the area and click photos and send it to Municipal Corporation saying from this point to this point the photos shows potholes on the roads.
