The footpath -- in a state of utter and continued neglect
| Date :05-Nov-2019 |
Maharajbagh Road, near Nagpur University (Nov 4, 2019)
By Vijay Phanshikar :
Excuses are often available to the civic administration for not doing the right things. However, in the case of the footpaths in Maharashtra’s Second Capital, there must be no excuses to hide behind -- for not taking proper care of a very important of the road-architecture. When ‘The Hitavada’ launched its campaign titled “Where is the footpath?” in the month of August, there was a naive expectation that the civic authorities would take up the cause of the city’s footpaths.
Two months later, ‘The Hitavada’ concluded the campaign in the hope that at least by that time, the civic authorities must have woken up. That naive expectation, that childish hope now stands unfulfilled post-legislative elections, post-Diwali. The city’s footpaths wait for a little dose of vitality, a little dash of cleanliness, a little care at the hands of the civic authorities -- so that the people can use those, feel good about walking on well-kept pavements like the people in many other cities do. But even a casual look around as one roams in various parts of the city reveals that the civic administration has had no time tending the footpaths, mending those in an appropriate manner.
That is where the people of Nagpur lose their sense of being the residents of a city that is cared for well. There may not be any exact statistical data available with ‘The Hitavada’ Reporters about the categories of neglect of the footpaths. But anybody can see without effort countless gaping holes in the top of storm drains that often form footpaths in our city.
The tiles in such spots have got broken down, and gone missing. At countless places, the people also come across mounds of filth extracted from the storm drains but not cleared by the agencies that are expected to handle garbage in the sprawling city. One go on for kilometers to find a patch of even 100 meters of footpath where all the tiles are intact and the pavement is fully usable without any trouble. At many spots, the people also realise that the civic authorities have not bothered top put back the tiles after repairs. Without the protection of the tiles, the condition of the footpaths deteriorates quickly, making it impossible for the people use the stretches for walking safely.
When ‘The Hitavada’ campaign by photographers Satish Raut and Anil Futane was going on, the civic authorities slumbered merrily. Irate citizens, too, joined the campaign by volunteering pictures of badly managed footpaths in their respective localities. Despite all the noise the campaign made, nothing concrete took place from the side of the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC). Yet, there was a hope that once the campaign is over, the civic authorities would wake up and start the task of tending and mending the footpaths in the city. But then an excuse emerged -- the State was to have legislative elections and the Model Code came into force, blocking a lot of administrative activity. Even a street urchin would know the bluff in the excuse.
For, the Model Code of Conduct does not stop the regular and ongoing civic works. Yet, the people understood that this could be the reason for the civic authorities for not taking proper steps to tend and mend the footpaths all over the city -- and they waited for the elections to be over. Elections are over and the Government formation, too, would be over in due course of time. Yet, on the civic front, there appears no concrete effort to repair the footpaths. Rains are still battering the region, and the footpaths are getting worse every passing -- particularly in the absence of any repairs, any attention. So, once again, the question “Where Is The Footpath?” has come up in people’s minds.
Yes, where is the footpath? And why is that the civic authorities have no inclination to do anything about the state of disrepair of the footpaths? Here, we reproduce some of the pictures of unkempt footpaths in our beloved city -- having been picked up from our campaign that we had concluded about a month ago after relentless pursuit of well over two months. We do this so that the people get to decide for themselves what kind of civic leadership does Maharashtra’s Second Capital have.