Around 150 hold silent protest at Sion church and school over new flyover blocking access

The rebuilt flyover at Sion has narrowed access to a school and a church. On Sunday morning, around 150 people gathered outside Our Lady of Good Counsel Church and School. They included church members, schoolchildren and their families. They stood in silence and asked the BMC how the flyover was allowed to come so close to the gate.

The flyover opened in mid-October. Residents say that while barricades were up, they had no idea what the finished structure would look like. When the barricades came down, they found that the flyover's descent extends beyond the school gate, leaving almost no room for vehicles to enter. They say they had expected the structure to end before the gate so that vehicles could drop off and pick up children.

Chrystal Colaco, a church member who took part in the protest, said: "If you park in front of any gate, the traffic police issue a challan. Here, an entire flyover has come down at our school's gate and is blocking the way for vehicles. How is this right?" She also questioned the planning of the project, saying that the effect on the school gate should have been considered before work began.

According to church member Meena Khule, only about a foot and a half of space is left to pass between the school and Sion station, which causes crowding outside the gate. She said the gap between the flyover and the skywalk's descent next to the school is just wide enough for a two-wheeler to squeeze through. She fears that in an emergency, those coming to help would find it hard to get in. She asked: "If there is no way in, how will the fire brigade get inside?"

The school's principal, Father Salvador D'Souza, voiced concern for the children's safety. He said children are now dropped about 100 metres from the school and have to walk along a narrow footpath where hawkers, drunkards and other unsavoury people are present. He asked how young pre-primary children could be expected to walk in such conditions. He said the skywalk and the flyover have blocked both gates of the school. Schoolchildren also joined Sunday's protest, holding placards demanding that the access be restored.

Josh D'Souza, a long-time church member, said the construction has also covered Gate 1, which is about 100 years old. He asked why the church was not taken into confidence during the work. According to him, the barricades came down a few days before the inauguration, and only then did it become clear that the flyover extends about 10 metres beyond the premises. He also said there is now a difference of about four feet between the gate and the main road, which makes it difficult to arrive by vehicle.

He said vehicles coming to pick up children can no longer reach the gate, and school buses drop children about 100 metres away. Elderly and disabled people are also finding it very difficult to reach the church. D'Souza also raised the issue of hawkers who use gas cylinders outside the school. He said this is an old hazard on which nothing has been done despite repeated complaints.

Responding to the protest, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar said: "The railways needed more clearance above the tracks, so they raised the height of the bridge. As a result, the approach roads also had to be raised, and this narrowed the entrance to the premises."

The protesters have placed three demands before the BMC. First, that vehicle access be reopened so that children can be dropped off and picked up inside the school premises. Second, that the skywalk be removed, as church members question its usefulness and say its descent narrows the way further. Third, that a no-hawking zone be declared outside the school so that the footpaths are kept free of hawkers and encroachments.