Mumbai: Potholes, unauthorised construction choke traffic in N ward

Across the ward, monsoon and traffic snarls are dreaded words. Roads get flooded during heavy showers. Even small pools of water turn into breeding sites for mosquitoes.

Illegal construction of buildings is rampant and haphazard parking of vehicles on the roads chokes traffic.

The ward often also faces an acute water shortage.

Traffic troubles: Irrespective of when residents leave home, they are bound to be held up in traffic in the ward. Newer constructions continue to encroach onto the roads as do illegally parked vehicles. Despite regular raids by the BMC, roadside eateries encroaching on lanes continue to mushroom. The sizeable crowds from malls like R-City spilling onto the roads slow down traffic to a crawl. Many residents claim that Metro commuters add to the peak hour rush.

Rocky roads: Roads in the ward are riddled with potholes despite repeated repairs. Many road accidents owing to potholes and uneven surfaces have been reported in Parksite and Ghatkopar. Patients heading for Rajawadi Hospital in Ghatkopar struggle to get there. Paver blocks on many footpaths, like MG Road in Ghatkopar, have begun to give way, inconveniencing pedestrians.

For most part of the day, chaos rules the stretch of LBS Road near R-City Mall in Ghatkopar. Pics/Sneha Kharabe

Parking problems: There is little space available to park vehicles, forcing motorists to take over roads. This only worsens the chaos. Autorickshaws are parked willy-nilly. Even footpaths are taken over. Left with no choice, pedestrians take the roads, which often leads to accidents.

The BMC has repaired roads in Ghatkopar often, but a spell of rain is enough to make all the work come undone

N Ward

Areas: Kamraj Nagar, Garodia Nagar, Ramabai Nagar, Pant Nagar, Kirol, Ghatkopar, Vikhroli, Bhim Nagar, Rahul Nagar, Parksite

Ward numbers and corporators: 128 Mangal Kadam, 127 Falguni Mukesh Dave, 126 Suresh Dnyanu Awale, 125 Rakhi Jadhav, 124 Pravin Velji Cheda, 123 Ashwini Bharat Mate, 122 Deepak Vaman Hande, 121 Ritu Rajesh Tawade, 120 Pratiksha Raju Ghuge, 119 Sanjay Dattatray Bhalerao, 118 Harun Yusuf Khan, 117 Bharti Subodh Bawadane

Population: 6,14,945

Area: 25.96 sq km

Ahead of the 2017 BMC polls, mid-day presents a 48-week initiative for citizens to raise their neighbourhood concerns. You and your corporator are now face-to-face in the Big Civic Battle. If you wish to highlight an issue troubling your ward, write to us at bmcpolls@mid-day.com