Mahabaleshwar civic body clears stalls from Mahatma Gandhi Road ahead of Diwali tourist rush

The Mahabaleshwar Municipal Council has begun action against unauthorised stalls, handcarts and encroachments by shopkeepers in the town, keeping in mind the rise in tourist numbers during the Diwali holidays.

Stalls and handcarts standing on Mahatma Gandhi Road, which leads to the main market, were removed under police protection. The road has been freed from encroachments. The drive has brought the town's encroachment problem back into discussion, and residents are watching whether the action will extend to encroachments in the market.

Mahabaleshwar is a major tourist destination in the state and sees heavy crowds in the Diwali season. At such a time it is necessary to keep roads clear, give pedestrians safe space to walk and remove obstacles to traffic. But on both sides of the road leading to the market, stalls and handcarts had encroached, as had the road in front of shops. Both residents and tourists faced difficulties. The council finally acted.

Beautification works worth about Rs 45 crore are said to have been carried out in the town. Even so, encroachments in the market, obstacles on roads and filth were visibly spoiling the town's appearance in many places. While the beautification work was under way, there were complaints that some traders had encroached on the road in the space in front of their shops. It was also said that in some places slabs had been placed over drains, obstructing pedestrians and the drainage of water.

Residents had come to feel that while so much was being spent on beautification, traders were turning the market into a slum. There was an expectation that, to preserve the identity of a tourist destination, beautification alone would not do, and that the administration should also take responsibility for keeping public spaces free of encroachment afterwards.

Then administrator Pallavi Patil had taken up an anti-encroachment drive and tried to free the town, including the market, of encroachments. She had taken bold action and cleared the town of encroachments. Afterwards, however, the administration ignored the matter entirely, and new stalls began to come up again at various places on all the town's roads. Doubts were being voiced about whether the council had shut down that department altogether. There was mixed talk in the town about whether the administration would act at all.

Against this background, the removal of handcarts and stalls from Mahatma Gandhi Road under police protection has to some extent put an end to that talk. However, a one-day action will not solve the problem. The administration faces the challenge of carrying out the drive consistently across the town.

After the action on the main road, residents expect the council to turn its attention to encroachments in the central market as well. There are complaints of difficulty in moving about the market because of unauthorised use of public space in front of shops, goods kept on the road, obstacles on drains and items in pedestrians' path.

For effective implementation of a "no hawkers, no vehicle zone" in the town, it is necessary to apply the same rules to everyone. Instead of stopping after removing stalls from one stretch of the road, there is a demand that all major roads and public spaces in the town, including the market, be inspected and action taken according to the rules.