08 February,2024 06:57 AM IST | Mumbai | Prasun Choudhari
Before and After: Vendors ply their wares on the same stretch in Borivli West on February 7. Pics/Nimesh Dave
On the day of the Ram Mandir consecration, January 22, Borivli's roads were cleaned and made hawker-free. Residents thought it to be the beginning of Ram Rajya but to everyone's disappointment, the hawkers are back. Citizens expressed disappointment and blamed the R Central ward of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for not ending the menace.
When mid-day visited three spots in Borivli West on January 22, there were no hawkers in sight but on February 7, on revisiting the areas, it was found out that the vendors were back in full force, blocking lanes to sell their wares.
The spacious road is always seen encroached by fruit and vegetable vendors making it very difficult for vehicles to pass.
Shreyas Shinde, a resident, said, "There is no space for even people to walk let alone drive. The vendors are notorious for encroaching and throwing away vegetable waste on the road, making it even more difficult to navigate on the street even on foot."
"This road is always encroached on by hawkers selling vegetables and fruits. If the BMC has provided a dedicated market space nearby, why are vendors allowed on the road? I am still confused as to why BMC is not taking action. Ironically, the Borivli police station has to keep its back gate closed because there is no chance for a vehicle to pass on this road. Even the back entrance of the metropolitan magistrate court is located on this road and the court is also not ordering the clearance of hawkers from this road," said resident Prashik Kamble.
The stretch is flooded by makeshift fast-food vendors, which creates a bottleneck.
"Vehicles coming from Dahisar towards Kandivli on SV Road usually face an issue at this spot. We get stuck in traffic as these vendors occupy a complete lane. This causes a bottleneck and the BMC also doesn't take any action. I usually travel on this road at peak hours and the bottleneck is a severe issue. What if some emergency service vehicle gets stuck here? Someone can lose their life due to this," said a commuter.
Mihir Joshi, a Malad resident, said, "Coming to Borivli is easier than returning home because of the bottleneck caused by hawkers. I travel three days a week to Borivli for work and every time it becomes hectic to return to Malad. During the Ram Mandir consecration, the hawkers were evicted but now the situation is back to the way it was. I was shocked to see the actual width of the road when hawkers were not encroaching on it."
The stretch towards Borivli station from Om Jewellers is infested with makeshift shops selling shoes, chappals and bags, which block an entire lane.
A commuter, "The situation in the evenings is terrible. One lane is blocked by these hawkers and people have to walk on the roads. This makes it more difficult for the traffic flow.""The fact that BMC is allowing these makeshift shops to function despite knowing the situation is surprising. Urgent intervention from the authorities is required," said another resident.
A commuter stuck in traffic lamented, "We were initially positive that Ram Rajya had started but the BMC, as always, decided to disappoint us."
A senior official from Borivli traffic division said, "All three locations are always flooded by traffic as one lane is always blocked by these hawkers. The BMC should act against the hawkers so that the roads are freed up. One lane is always blocked, causing a bottleneck and on top of that, pedestrians don't use the skywalk, adding up to the congestion. Also, many people stand on roads to buy the goods sold by these hawkers."
Sandhya Nandedkar, assistant municipal commissioner, R Central ward, said, "We have started taking action on the illegal hawkers and makeshift shops every morning."
"We will start taking action from 5 pm and ensure no hawker returns. We are sure that the roads will be hawker-free soon. Hawkers usually come back the same day even after we take action. Hence, we are planning to crack down on them during the evening peak hours as well."
