1-km pipeline work creates pitfalls for 10,000 students

The damaged road from Tehsildar Kacheri Chowk to Swargate is a nightmare for both pedestrians and motorists passing through the area

Since last six months, citizens coming for work to Tehsildar Kacheri and Khadak police station, and around 10,000 students of Shri Shivaji Maratha Society’s schools and colleges on Shivaji Road, have been apprehensive about their every step. The reason behind this is the damaged road from Tehsildar Kacheri Chowk to Swargate. The one-kilometre stretch is in a precarious position owing to work done on pipelines some time ago.

Rough ride: The kilometre-long section is in a precarious position owing to work done on pipelines earlier. Pic/Krunal Gosavi

“We have one girls’ high school, two primary schools, two boys’ high schools, two junior colleges and two senior colleges, and every day more than 10,000 students have to travel through this Shivaji Road to get into our institutes. It has become a very dangerous section, and students who walk to our schools risk their lives. Cyclists are uneasy riding here as well,” said Ashok Sutar, administrative officer of Shri Shivaji Maratha Society.

“There is very little space to walk, and the concrete on the road keeps coming out. The level of half of this cement road has dropped and there are many potholes over here. We have repeatedly requested traffic police and Pune Municipal Corporation through letters to take care of the road and traffic near our schools,” he added.

This chowk is always crowded during weekdays, as people come to Tehsildar Kacheri for getting there legal work done. Pune Tehsildar Meenal Kalaskar told MiD DAY, “The road in front of our office is in really bad shape. We have heavy crowds here from the morning till late afternoon, as people have to use this path. We hope that the road will be repaired soon, as citizens face a lot of inconvenience due to it.”

Similar is the condition of people going to Khadak police station. “The issue here is of space. The chowk is always teeming with people and vehicles. On top of that, there is two-sided parking on this stretch, and we have sent official letters to PMC for removing this,” said senior inspector Rajendra Kadam.

The cement coming out of the road causes vehicles to skid, and two-wheeler riders are particularly fearful. “While I was going through this road my bike was wobbling and at anytime I could have fallen down. As there are many potholes we have to watch them out and even the pedestrians come in between,” said Madhukant Samal, a regular commuter.

Tushar Jawalkar, a student of Shivaji Maratha Society, told MiD DAY, “While coming to college every day, we encounter a lot of dust, as the number of vehicles and pedestrians is very high. Also vehicles are parked improperly and there is no police for traffic regulation at this spot.”

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