Letter to govt: Give us our footpaths back

NOIDA: On the footpaths in Noida as well as other NCR cities, pedestrians have to jostle for space that is rightfully theirs. Encroachment on the sidewalks by shops, hawkers and for vehicle parking remains rampant, forcing people to walk on roads and on to the path of traffic, increasing the risk of accidents.
The Confederation of NCR Residents Welfare Associations (CONRWA) has written to Hardeep Puri, the Union minister of state for housing and urban affairs (MoHUA), as well as the chief ministers of UP, Delhi, Rajasthan, among others, demanding encroachment-free footpaths.
Citing a Supreme Court judgment dated September 2, 2019, where justices Arun Mishra and Deepak Gupta ruled against encroachment on footpaths in Delhi in the name of ramps, beautification and security guard cabins, the residents’ body has asked for the order’s implementation in the entire NCR as well as the entire country.
The RWA body categorised the encroachers into three kinds — the most-visible (street vendors/hawkers/makeshift shopkeepers), the party visible (owners of small, medium, and large shops) and most harmful (house/building owner). The third type, according to the RWA body, “invade” the footpaths in front of their houses by gardens, sloping ramps, steps, plantations or mini-parking areas. The CONRWA claimed that the encroachments are dangerous for senior citizens, sick persons, the differently abled, and children.
PS Jain, president (CONRWA), said, “The issue of encroachments on footpaths is important and concern for almost every citizen. However, it has remained grossly neglected.” Jain added, “Every person, at some point of the day, is a pedestrian. Law states that pedestrians must walk only on footpaths. When the pavements are encroached upon, damaged or obstructed, a pedestrian is forced to walk on to the roads. Footpaths in cities are largely ‘encroached upon’. Strangely, the civic authorities and traffic police do not care about this issue.” Anil Sharma, general secretary (CONRWA), said that encroachers have no ‘class’ distinction. “From the poor to rich, everyone encroaches upon the footpaths. Nearly all markets in GB Nagar’s residential sectors, homes and other areas have these encroachments. Despite many drives, the encroachments are back. Hence, it’s important to remove them to reclaim space for the pedestrians,” said Sharma.
The RWA body has urged the minister to ensure that encroachment details of the NCR be compiled, notices are issued to encroachers as per the directions of the Supreme Court order and a seminar on encroachment-free footpaths (EFF) under the aegis of the NCR planning board in association with CONRWA be organised.