Parking on roads roadblock to safety: Marine Drive residents

While Sydenham College in Churchgate is setting up its library again, putting behind the memories of a fire on Sunday that gutted most of its books, residents of Marine Drive shudder at the thought of the damage that could have been done if the fire had broken out during busy hours of a working day.

All the roads in the area — A, B, C and D — are congested with parking on both the sides of the road, leaving very little space for vehicular movement. In case of emergencies, these parked vehicles could create serious hurdles in the way of emergency services. Residents claim that old buildings in the area do not have parking spaces, as when they were built, the entire Churchgate area had only a few cars. Today, each house has at least two cars, they said. Residents feel that redevelopment of buildings is the need of the hour to ease such problems plaguing the area.

The fire that broke out at the college — in which the library of Sydenham Institute of Management Studies, Research and Entrepreneurship Education (SIMSREE) was gutted, destroying around 16,600 books, furniture and computers — once again brought into focus the need for dedicated lanes for easy movement of fire brigade vehicles and ambulances during emergencies.

However, some residents have been opposing redevelopment in the area. The group has even approached the court. When a correspondent from Zee Media Corporation Limited approached Ashok Rao, president of the Federation of Churchgate Residents, who is opposing redevelopment in the area, he claimed, "Most of the buildings in the area belong to landlords, and there is no problem of parking in the area. Residents do park their cars on the road, but it does not pose any hindrance."

Asked about the danger posed by incidents such as the fire on Sunday, Rao chose not to comment. Asked who would be held liable in case of loss of lives in such incidents, he said, "The matter is in court, and I do not want to comment."

However, a majority of residents have been pressing for redevelopment as they feel that their dilapidated structures pose safety hazards. Two years ago, a resident, Kawal Shahpuri, had started a campaign in the area for the redevelopment, and had submitted signatures of more than 400 residents to the Chief Minister.

Mahendra Hemdev, a resident of the area, said, "Go anywhere in the world, no cars are parked on the road. But here at Churchgate, the roads are always congested. Where is the space for parking? If buildings are redeveloped, cars can be parked inside building premises," he said.

"If redeveloped, landlords will get more FSI, tenants will get ownership and the State Government will get revenue. That apart, redeveloped buildings will have enough parking space," added Hemdev.