While demands for better bus stands have been echoing in other parts of the State, the state-of-art bus stand at Shiroda has been facing a peculiar problem.
Built at a cost of Rs 3.6 crore nearly five years ago, the bus stand in Shiroda has been virtually abandoned by private bus operators and passengers are reluctant to board the buses from the bus stand.
All this is due to one main reason: The Shiroda market is located about 150-200 meters from the new bus stand and passengers prefer to alight from the bus at the market.
The foundation stone for the new Shiroda bus stand was laid in August 2006 and the GSIDC completed the project in August 2008.
The bus stand was functional for some time, but buses began to avoid entering or leaving the bus stand for want of passengers. The present situation is such that except for KTC buses, private buses have completely avoided stopping at the new bus stand.
“What is the use of stopping at the new bus stand, when passengers prefer to get down or wait at the old bus stand located in the village market? There are hardly any passengers at the new bus stand and we unnecessarily have to pay an entry fee of Rs 10. It is not feasible to use the new bus stand and that is why we have stopped going to the bus stand,” admitted a bus driver, on condition of anonymity.
Of the 12 shops in the new bus stand, only three are operational. “Since the bus stand is not functioning, most of the shops are shut,” remarked Gurudas Vir, who works at an ice cream parlour which was started about six months ago.
Unhappy that a project worth crores of rupees is lying idle in the village, the Shiroda panchayat has taken the initiative to promote the use of the Shiroda bus stand.
“We have already shifted the weekly Tuesday market near the new bus stand and we are in the process of developing a master plan so that the new bus stand built by the government is put to better use. But I feel that there was no proper planning done while constructing the bus stand. Nevertheless, we will make efforts so that the new bus stand is functional,” Shiroda Sarpanch Sandesh Prabhudessai told Herald.
Shiroda market is located about 150-200 metres from the new bus stand and passengers prefer to get down or wait at the market.
“Our idea is to shift the market adjacent to the new bus stand. The market is always crowded and shifting the market will not only decongest the area, but the new bus stand can be put to better use. Once the master plan is ready, it will be placed before the gram sabha as we don’t want to force our decision on the people,” informed Prabhudessai.
“The panchayat is also constructing a shade at a cost of about Rs 9 lakh adjacent to the new bus stand for the weekly market. Our local MLA and Industries Minister, Mahadev Naik, has extended his support and we have also got a green signal from Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar to shift the market close to the new bus stand,” Prabhudessai added.
