Bengaluru

Domlur

Srinagar

Namma Metro

BMTC depot

THE BUS STOPS HERE

One of the city’s oldest bus routes – 201 – infuses a sense of history about southern. Sit back as Bangalore Mirror takes you on this holistic journey of cultural discoveryOne of the oldest city bus routes in Bengaluru is route 201, which ferries people fromin the eastern part toin the south-west. The route has seen at least two generations of commuters, while being the longest route in the city at one time. With Bengaluru’s exponential growth, route 201 has not been able to retain the position of the “longest route” anymore – but undoubtedly remains a route dotted with memorable places.The bus starts at Domlur bus stand, one of the oldest areas of the city, with the ancient 12th century Chokkanathaswamy temple within walking distance.As we leave the bus stand, it crosses the junction of Old Airport road and comes on to 100-Foot Road.The first stop is Doopanahalli. This road is the gateway to India’s food and beverage hub. Thereafter it passes through New Horizon College, HAL 12th and 6th Main bus stops on this road.As the bus turns left towards CMH Road, a beautifully developed park can be seen on the right where the city’s first vertical garden has been developed.As the bus crawls over CMH road, we reach thetransit stop at the Indiranagar metro station.The bus enters Halasuru via Lakshmipura and Halasuru Police station bus stops.From modern area to another historic area, 201 witnesses another historic site of the ancient Someshwara Temple at Halasuru, built by the Cholas.Next is the old Lido bus stop, next to which once stood the Lido Theatre. Now in its place stands the Lido Mall. Lido stands near the junction of Trinity Church Road,MG Road, Bhaskaran Road and Swamy Vivekananda Road.One can actually get off the bus at this stop and leisurely walk along MG Road. Route 201 then moves southwards along Richmond Road, passing through the Police Housing Corporation and Dsouza Circle and turns left towards St Philomena Hospital.Started off as two-bed maternity centre in 1937 by Mary Veronica Pitt from Australia, St Philomena Hospital has expanded over the years and currently offers postgraduate training.The bus from Srinagar to Domlur comes via St Patrick’s Church, Mayo Hall and on to MG Road.St Patrick’s Church was built in the 1890s for the Irish troops. Mayo Hall is a heritage monument built in 1883 in the memory of the 4th Viceroy of India, Lord Mayo.Further down is the Austin Town bus stop. Austin Town is the hub of football in Bengaluru.Also in Austin Town, the British built several Nissen houses for the troops during the war (World War II, 1939-1945), and some of these houses can still be seen.The bus traverses down Vannarpet, which has the famous Kashi Vishveshwara Temple built in 1887 by the Tamil community, and further down to Viveknagar where the beautiful Infant Jesus Church is located. Route 201, till this point soaked in the history of the Cantonment, and now reaches Rajendranagar via Ejipura Junction with the National Games Village in the surrounding, and more importantly, close to the bus stop is the Lakshmi Devi Temple. The temple was built in the memory of Kempegowda’s daughter-in-law Lakshamma.From history, back to the modern era, 201 moves towards Koramangala via BMTC and the junction of 80-Foot Road and 100-Foot Road, popularly known as the Sony World Junction.As the bus turns right, one is welcomed by a canopy of trees lined along the road passing through Canara Bank, BDA Complex, and Water Tank.The entire stretch and around is a hub for start-ups. This landscape changes the moment the bus turns at a sharp right towards Madivala market, a traditional vegetable and fruit market where vendors from nearby villages sell their produce.Now comes the mother of all traffic junctions – Silk Board. The Central Silk Technological Research Institute was set up at Central Silk Board in 1983, dedicated to silk technology research.This erstwhile deserted place in the early days of route 201 is now lost in the midst of chaos. Just a kilometre from the Silk Board Junction bus stop is the ancient Someshwara Temple which dates back to 11th-12th century. The bus moves slowly from Silk Board all the way to Jayadeva Hospital, passing through BTM Layout, Udupi Garden, and Mico Layout. The scene from Jayadeva flyover changes suddenly, with the young and modern crowd giving way to a more traditional one.The next stop for 201 is East End, marking the easternmost end of Jayanagar, when it was developed back in the 1950s.As the bus moves towards the tree-laden road, it reaches Ragigudda stop, named after the Ragigudda Anjaneyaswamy Temple. From Ragigudda, the bus moves towards Marenahalli Petrol Bunk, now the Jayanagar 4th T block BMTC bus terminal.Next is the long wait at the JP Nagar signal or Raghavendraswamy Mutt, which is on the right.Next stop for 201 is Sangam Circle where the roads from Jayanagar, Kanakapura Road and Banashankari converge.As the bus approaches Banashankari bus stand, nearly 70 per cent of the passengers alight and another set board. Named after the popular Banashankari Temple, the bus stand provides a transit point for passengers to travel towards ORR, Majestic/City Market, Kanakapura Road, Uttarahalli and BSK. It is also a transit point for Metro.As the bus conductor struggles to issue tickets to the swelling crowd, the bus reaches Monotype. Next is Hunasemara stop, named after a tamarind tree which stood here several years ago. 201 then passes through the hilly terrains of BSK 2nd stage, Post Office, Indira Nursing Home and KIMS before reaching ORR at Deve Gowda Petrol Bunk.As the bus turns right, the next stop is Kamakya, another busy junction with Banagiri Hill and-13 on the right; and Eshwari-Kamakya theatre on the left.As the bus struggles to climb the steep slope just before the signal, passengers prepare to get down at Kathriguppe, once a sleepy locality. It then climbs down towards Janata Bazaar stop, named after a 10-year-old shopping centre.The next official stop is Hosakerehalli Cross, which used to be the last stop of buses, and passengers had to walk all the way towards the Hosakerehalli, three km away in the 1970s and 80s.The bus moves towards Seetha Circle, and then SBM Colony. The entire stretch from seems to have become an image of Gandhi Bazaar.As the bus empties at Srinivasanagar, a couple of left turns lead the route to Apex Bank stop, very close to the traditional area of Hanumanthanagar where temple bells can be heard in the mornings and evenings.By this time, 201 is exhausted as it turns towards Srinagar bus stand. The narrow residential lane leads to Srinagar bus stand, culminating the journey, taking around 1.5 hours on a fairly relaxed day.1 Domlur2 Doopanahalli3 Indiranagar 100 Feet Road4 Lakshmipura (Halasuru)5 Halasuru/Ulsoor6 Begum Mahal Circle7 Trinity Circle8 Electric B Station (M G Road)9 Mayo Hall10 D Souza Circle11 St Philomena Hospital12 Austin Town13 Vannarpet14 Sonnenahalli (Viveknagar)15 National Games Village16 Regional Passport Office17 Koramangala Bmtc Depot18 Koramangala Junction Of 80 Feet And 100 Feet Road/Sony World19 Koramangala Canara Bank20 Koramangala Bda Complex21 Koramangala Water Tank22 Mico Layout23 Madiwala Ayyappa Temple24 Madiwala Police Station25 Central Silk Board26 Kuvempunagar (Btm Layout)27 Btm Layout 16th Main/Udupi Garden28 BTM Layout Water Tank29 Koramangala Kendriya Sadan30 Jayadeva Hospital31 Jayanagar 9th Block East End32 Ragigudda33 Aurobindo Circle J P Nagar34 Jayanagar 5th Block35 Sangam Circle36 Banashankari37 Kaverinagar38 Yarabnagar39 Kadirenahalli Cross40 Kadirenahalli Park41 Devegowda Petrol Bunk42 Kamakhya Theater43 Katriguppe44 Katriguppe Janata Bazaar45 Hosakerehalli Cross46 Seetha Circle47 Stage/Mysore Bank Colony48 Banashankari 1st Stage49 Srinagar Apex Bank Srinivasanagar50 Srinagar( The writer is a techie and an avid explorer)