SANTOSH NAIK
PONDA: Locals in Ponda have expressed their strong resentment over shortages of parking spaces in Ponda city, as they feel the shortage of parking spaces force them to park their vehicles anywhere on the roadside including no parking areas, due to which traffic department issues challans or clamp their vehicles.
Of course, the traffic officials say they are playing by the book and merely doing their duty, as issuing challans for violating rules, as part of their duty.
Motorists feel the challan issued to them are merely harassment, as there are no sufficient parking spaces in city. They blame traffic police and Ponda Municipal Council for not providing proper parking despite ample availability of open spaces at old bus stand and near old Mamlatdar building near Ponda police station, which are either lying idle or not utilised properly for providing parking to its full capacity.
After the shifting of Ponda bus stand to KTC bus stand, the old bus stand in Ponda has been converted into a bus stop. Locals feel that the vast area can be utilised for parking and could also be converted into a pay-parking zone. However, strangely the area has been illegally occupied by mobile hand cart hawkers since the past two months.
Locals now want action on this illegal encroachment and the conversion of the space into a reserved pay parking area.
High rise buildings are seen in city without adequate parking facilities and basement are often converted into shops. This has led to great inconvenience to people coming with vehicle in the city, in absence shortage of parking space. People are often forced to park their vehicles on the road side and soon traffic police are seen clamping the vehicles.
Locals are of the view that when Ponda Municipal Council and Traffic Department have no sufficient space they should create more spaces, demarcate proper parking areas and then issue challans on related violations.
Even when everybody knows that there is no parking space in Ponda, the traffic police are taking advantage of this and issuing challans to vehicles for parking at road side, when they come for their work in the city. People now want an immediate change in this situation and want the PMC and traffic department to sit together and sort out Ponda’s parking problem and indentify more spaces.
A local Gurudas Naik agrees that the unused old bus stand open areas encroached by mobile cart hawkers, who have stationed around 19 handcarts should be cleared immediately and the area should be utilised as pay parking area.
The former Vice Chairperson of PMC Mahadev Khandolkar, who was issued challan for parking his car in front of a building, said the traffic police should stop harassing the public over parking issues. Traffic Department should first sit with PMC and discuss the issue, he said, adding that when they stops vehicles in city’s busy roads, it further adds to traffic congestion.
They should focus on the smooth functioning of traffic in the city, he said.
When asked about illegal encroachment of mobile handcart hawkers, PMC Chief Officer of Ponda Navnath Naik said the encroachment would be cleared immediately and asserted that PMC would sit together with the traffic police, councillor and public to sort out parking issues and efforts are on in this directions.
