The Sattari people are demanding to build a bus stop and also install speed breakers on the main road near the Community Health Centre, Valpoi. According to locals, patients visiting the Community Health Centre Valpoi by bus every day, have to face hardships since there is neither a bus shelter nor speed breakers near the Centre. Patients have to wait in the hot sun to board their respective buses.
People also face difficulty in entering and exiting the hospital due to the fast moving vehicles on this road.
“People visit the hospital campus for various reasons; Dialysis unit for chronic kidney disease; nearly hundred pregnant women visit CHC for ante-natal checkups and many of them travel by public transport. And there is also a special school for differently-abled children,” say locals.
“Without a bus shelter or shaded space to wait, passengers perch themselves on the footpath, says a local. Waiting for buses is always an unenviable task but without a shelter it is worse,” says Sadguru Gurav, a local.
“Many major accidents have taken place in past few years, due to rash driving on the short stretch from the CHC to the Valpoi court,” says another local Shamrao Gaonkar.
One of the carrying mothers Shamal Gaonkar says, “We have to visit hospital for ante-natal check-up every month and it is very dangerous to cross the road as we can’t walk fast. There is an urgent need to construct a speed breaker in front of the entry point of Valpoi Hospital. This is a busy road which has a heavy volume of traffic throughout the day”.
“The PWD Road Department, Valpoi, Valpoi Municipal Council and the Valpoi Police Station should sit down and look into this matter and sought it out as early as possible before any incident occurs,” Shamal added.
There is an urgent need of bus-stop with shades so that commuters won’t have problems in monsoon season, says one of the residents Javed Khan. “I have a new born child who has to visit hospital for immunisation, my wife and my child have to be always in sun as there is no shade to stand to catch a bus. And it’s very dangerous to cross the road also with the child as it is broad and the vehicle movement is very fast on this stretch. I feel the authorities should take action before any serious incident happens.”
The President of Senior Citizen Forum of Sattari, Kutboddin Khan says when a person becomes aged, his hospital visits also increase. ”My fellow senior citizens of Sattari have to visit the CHC for their medical treatment and most of them travel by bus, they have to wait for bus in hot sun for a long time. I feel the need of bus shade in front of CHC Valpoi is essential. I will bring up this issue with our MLA and Health minister Vishwajit Rane.”
Another parent whose child studies in the school for special children which is situated in hospital premises says that it’s difficult to enter the hospital premises.
“When I bring my child on bike to school it become very difficult to turn and proceed to the school as the vehicles from the opposite side move very fast, thus making this road very dangerous. Many persons have met with accidents on this stretch. There is an urgent need of constructing speed breakers so that further casualties can be prevented.”
When contacted chairperson of Valpoi Municipal council Parvin Shaikh said she understands the need of a speed breaker and a bus shelter in front of government hospital
“Earlier before my term the resolution to construct a bus shelter was taken up, I will find out the status of it and in next council meeting,” he added.
