Condition of Mor Bhawan bus terminus prompts NMC into action mode
| Date :13-Apr-2024 |
Staff Reporter
Municipal Commissioner and Administrator Dr Abhijeet Chaudhari himself saw the sorry state of affairs at Mor Bhawan from where city buses ply in different parts. The rains over last few days have exacerbated the conditions at the prime land in Sitabuldi Business District, exposing the sorry condition. NMC shares Mor Bhawan with Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC), whose inter-district buses also ply from Mor Bhawan. Over the years, no development has taken place at Mor Bhawan despite hundreds of travellers using the MSRTC and NMC run city buses daily. A nullah flowing adjoining the bus depot emanates foul smell and neither MSRTC nor NMC has taken any steps to combat the pollution. As to hygiene, the less is said, the better as the erstwhile Central Bus Stand even lacks basic hygiene facility. Municipal Commissioner along with senior officials of NMC visited and inspected the facilities so that corrective measures could be undertaken.
The rains over last few days has resulted in accumulation of rain water and led to slushy conditions, making it difficult to operate the buses. Many grandiose plans were announced about makeover of Mor Bhawan but till date, no plans materialised as for policy makers it’s still not on priority list apparently. Even the operation of buses is becoming difficult at Mor Bhawan as entry and exit roads are perennially blocked by haphazardly parked autorickshaws and gobbling-up of public space by hawkers. Even commuters face difficulty in reaching Mor Bhawan as the adjoining footpath is never free from encroachers.
Rajiv Gaikwad, Chief Engineer, Public Works Department, NMC; Manoj Talewar, Superintending Engineer; Mahesh Dhamecha, Transport Manager; R U Rathod, Executive Engineer (Electrical); Shrikant Waikar, Executive Engineer, Water Works; Vijay Gurubaxani, Executive Engineer, Dharampeth Zone; Ajay Dahake, Executive Engineer, Hot Mix Plant; Ravindra Pagey, Administrative Officer, Transport; Kedar Mishra, Deputy Engineer, Transport; Yogesh Lunge, Mechanical Engineer; along with officials of DiMTS and PMI Mobility Company held discussions with Municipal Commissioner for ensuring motorable roads and removing of slush and improving surface quality at Mor Bhawan.
Even the DP Road that was constructed anew was water logged as during its construction, no thought was given for laying drainage. As a result, the road remained unusable escalating the already aplenty problems at Mor Bhawan complex.
Municipal Commissioner directed civic body officials to level the depot surface and directed Hot Mix Plant to take-up the work. Similarly the DP road should be repaired and ensure that water drains off from it and the task was allotted to Dharampeth Zone. Also, he asked Water Works Department to provide water taps at the depot for travellers. For hygiene, the Slum Department is tasked with construction of urinals at the depot and Electric Department was directed to ensure new electric poles are erected in the area. Commissioner also directed PME to provide for opportunity charger so that buses received by NMC under PM Electric Buses scheme can be charged at Mor Bhawan. Similarly, Transport Department was asked to demarcate NMC area at Mor Bhawan.