‘The Hitavada’ CityLine report ‘Munje Square, Mockery of Civic Order', the organised chaos that has possessed Munje Square today is typical of all major squares in the city. This is the outcome of sustained conflict of provisions in the two central laws namely, Street Vendors Act 2014 and Motor Vehicles Act 2019 (amended MVA 1988). Though all of the three, Centre, State, and Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) are collectively at fault for the chaos, evidently, none of them seem to be willing to take any corrective action.

 

Thanks to their political compulsion, which stoops to absolve brazen violations. However, the local authorities including the police still have the jurisdiction to frame certain local rules tailored from existing central and state laws, which could be roughly as follows. Disallow/cancel permission to build/use large non-residential buildings abutting narrow lanes, to avoid traffic bottlenecks. Disallow roadside cooking/cleaning/storage. Allow street vendors only with cart/wagon/vehicle. Build stone/steel barricades along the roadsides wherein footpaths are prone to encroachment by street vendors, by large shops and offices. Barricades can also prevent the menace of stray animals.

 

Ban/Penalize roadside parking by new buildings in congested areas. Block all free left turns at major squares to prevent bottlenecks and speeding. Block all gaps in the medians which cause frequent traffic jams on major streets. Use extra CCTV cams at public places prone to criminal activities. Avoid large plants and signboards on the medians that could block clear view for drivers. And last but not the least, civic authorities should rather prioritize spending on regular maintenance of existing civic amenities than splurging on new 'investments'.