Residents call for action against offenders
Ishtiyaq Kar
Srinagar, June 26: Residents of Wazirbagh Srinagar have demanded that the authorities declare roads in the vicinity as “no parking” zones.
The residents have raised several concerns regarding haphazard parking by visitors of Lalded hospital and commercial buildings in the area.
Irked by the issue of haphazard parking almost every day, the residents have now urged the Commissioner Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and the SSP traffic (SSP) to intervene.
Residents told Morning Kashmir Correspondent that the movement of vehicles in the area is very high every day due to a number of commercial buildings, offices and malls in the area. “The visitors illegally park their vehicles on inner roads, which actually are only reserved for local residents,” Mushtaq Ahmad, a local resident said.
He said that the vehicles parked on the roads have also been creating a nuisance for pedestrians. “It has become impossible for elderly residents to walk in the area due to the parked vehicles. Roads in the area have become unsafe, especially for children, because of the constant heavy movement of vehicles,” he said.
Another local resident said that residents in the area have not been able to drive their own vehicles on these roads.
“Every day, Residential Lanes, here in Wazirbagh Srinagar are crammed and choked with haphazardly parked vehicles leaving little space for pedestrians. We are facing serious inconveniences while authorities are not taking any step despite repeated complaints,” he said.
“Nothing can be worse that an ambulance could not enter a lane because of a parked vehicle. “By the time people could locate the owner of the vehicle and ask him to shift his car, the condition of the patient had deteriorated,” he added.
This sight of vehicles parked in the residential areas is not only in wazir Bahgh. The situation is worse in localities with big commercial establishments or hospitals, or educational institutes or houses rented out to private offices in the Srinagar city.
“The city is witnessing massive transformation with commercial establishments coming up almost everywhere. With a clinic here, there is no space for patients to park vehicles. That is why they are looking for parking spaces in lanes and bylanes causing inconvenience to residents. The SMC should come up with micro-zoning rules so that commercial establishments like hospitals, offices, schools and corporate offices should not be allowed to come up in residential areas,” said a senior Advocate, practicing in the Lower court here in Srinagar.
He said commercial buildings have seen an exponential rise in Jawaharnagar, Gogjibagh, Rajbagh areas in the past few years, but the supplementary parking space has not grown, rather open spaces have been encroached upon. One of the top officials here in the SMC said, “We are aware of the problem and have earlier launched a drive to check unauthorised parking in the local residential areas. “Several roads in the city have been declared as no-parking zones. In the coming days we would ensure strict enforcement of illegal parking,” the official said.
