Shiroda, which is one of four constituencies in Ponda taluka, faces a major problem of traffic congestion at its prime location – the bazaar. The bazaar houses several shops and the panchayat office, while passenger buses use the area as a stop to pick up people.
The road at the Shiroda bazaar is narrow and used by several pedestrians and motorists daily. This leads to traffic congestion, which inconveniences people, especially during emergencies. Additionally, vendors sit on either side of the road to sell their vegetables, fruits, etc, making it difficult for pedestrians to walk. Accidents have also occurred at times.
According to locals, the problems at the bazaar can be solved if the government is serious about the issue. They stated that constructing a bypass road, shifting the vendors to a new market complex and utilizing the unused KTC bus stand was the need of the hour to decongest the bazaar.
“To decongest the Shiroda Bazaar, the first thing that needs to be done is to shift the bus stand existing at the bazaar. A place where it can be shifted already exists in the form of the full-fledged KTC bus stand, which is just 500 metres away. The second thing to decongest the bazaar is to construct a full-fledged market complex away from the bazaar, and the third is to construct a bypass road connected to the KTC stand. We have placed proposals before the government for a bypass road and market complex. Using the idle KTC stand with the other two measures could help a lot to sort out the issues at the bazaar,” said Sandesh Prabhudessai, Shiroda Sarpanch.
He said a lot developmental work had been carried out in Shiroda under many government schemes, and now he was trying to solve the major problems affecting the village, one of them being the traffic congestion at the bazaar.
“There is inadequate space for the local vendors and for traffic, which causes traffic congestion. Buses plying towards Shiroda also collect passengers at the bazaar, which leads to congestion and causes great hardships for the locals when they visit the area. We are facing a lot of problems, especially on the Tuesday market day,” said Prabhudessai.
He continued, “To sort out the problem, we recently started using the open spaces at the Kadamba Bus stand by constructing sheds as a temporary market place, from where vendors now operate. Through this measure, traffic congestion on the weekly market day has been solved to some extent. But to completely solve the congestion problem at the bazaar, we need a bypass road at the Kadamba bus stand.”
The KTC bus stand was constructed in 2006 and inaugurated in 2008. However, bus owners are reluctant to use it as passengers prefer to wait at the bazaar. The buses wait for only a short period at the KTC bus stand.
“Along with a bypass road, there is a need to shift the Shiroda market to the KTC bus stand. We have acquired land near the bus stand for a market complex. If this proposal is approved, it will not only reduce traffic congestion, but also force the buses to use the KTC stand, which is lying idle. Further, thousands of devotees visit the Shiroda Kamaxi Temple for the Amavasya Festival. If a road is built from the KTC stand towards the temple, it will help a lot to minimise the traffic on the main road on that day,” said Prabhudessai.
He also said that around 23 major developmental works had been completed in Shiroda with the help of the Industries Minister.
“We recently renovated the fish market shed and around 15 vendors sell fish there. We have provided Rajiv and Indira Awaas Yojana to the general category, wherein Rs 12,000 has been given as aid for house construction. Around 500 people from the ST community availed the Atal Asra Yojna, under which Rs 1 lakh is provided as financial help to each of the beneficiaries. The Shiroda panchayat may be only one where most of the beneficiaries have taken advantage of the scheme,” said Prabhudessai.
He continued, “We also provide books to needy students, Ganesh idol immersion points have been developed at several places, most roads are hot-mixed, and there are four full-fledged crematoriums in the panchayat area. The Shiroda hospital project is likely to be inaugurated in May; it is an initiative of Industries Minister Mahadev Naik and costs around Rs 8 crore. The panchayat will also develop its ground at Karai at a cost of around Rs 7 crore. The tender has already been issued.”
“Further, the Mysal water treatment plant work is nearing completion. After its commissioning, Shiroda will not face a water shortage. At present, we face a shortage in Tolpan, Sankre, and Makadsai due to a drop in water level at the OPA water treatment plant, according to its officials. Tankers supply water to those three areas,” added Prabhudessai.
