Congestion-free city roads is a basic expectation

Residents cited earlier complaints elicited little to no response but were happy that action had been taken at last. A local stated that more than 60 societies on the stretch were impacted.

Another resident stated that for years, heavy dumpers, cranes, and JCBs were parked with drivers creating a nuisance by bathing and urinating on the roads. Illegal hawkers have been removed and clogged lanes are free. At least 37 abandoned vehicles have been towed with clearing illegally parked vehicles ongoing.

Officials have ensured that action will continue, as it should otherwise, like a familiar pattern, we will see a boomerang effect. Once the initial heat cools down, encroachers return as this is familiar and ‘comfortable’ territory. The clearing has to be permanent to have meaning, restore belief in citizens and ensure safety at all times.

We must also ask authorities why all these illegal encroachments and parking, especially of abandoned vehicles, were allowed to go on in the first place? 

Authorities need to act quickly, remove the encroachment, even if it is a solitary one as soon as it is brought to their notice. Allow or turn a blind eye or simply not notice the number of illegalities till you have a disaster or a situation explodes. We need response not when things go  out of hand but before we arrive at this dangerous juncture.