NMC, police clear Jhansi Rani Chowk footpath vendors; case registered against one person

Footpath vendors at Jhansi Rani Chowk in Nagpur district were thrown into panic on Wednesday afternoon when an enforcement squad of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) arrived with a heavy police contingent. Dharampeth Zone Assistant Commissioner Rajkumar Meshram and Enforcement Department Assistant Commissioner Sanjay Kamble were present in the squad.

As soon as the squad arrived, vendors began running and scrambled to save their goods. The action nevertheless continued, and goods belonging to several footpath vendors were seized. The two officers had the entire area cleared, and a case was also registered against those who had set up shops on the footpath.

After the joint action by the NMC and police, the whole area appeared free of encroachments by evening. Later, however, the footpath returned to its earlier state.

According to the NMC administration, complaints had been coming in about unauthorised shops and other encroachments on the footpath and parts of the main road on the stretch from Jhansi Rani Chowk to North Ambazari Road. These were causing trouble for pedestrians as well as motorists. In the drive, the encroachments were removed and the road and footpath were cleared for movement.

The joint NMC and police team removed those who had encroached. During this, a criminal case was registered against one person under the relevant provisions. The administration has made it clear that strict action will continue against those who encroach again on public roads and footpaths.

The administration has indicated that similar action will continue on other major roads in the city in the coming days, particularly at places where encroachment on footpaths or roads halts traffic. It has appealed to citizens and shopkeepers not to encroach on public paths and not to set up again after the action.

The NMC administration says the real purpose of a footpath is to give pedestrians a safe and easy path. When shops, handcarts or other encroachments occupy the footpath, people are forced to walk on the main road. This raises the risk of accidents and also affects traffic.

For this reason, the NMC has decided to intensify its anti-encroachment drive on the city's major roads and busy intersections. At busy areas such as Jhansi Rani Chowk, efforts are being made to clear footpaths and ease the movement of pedestrians as well as vehicles.