Is there parking space for new cars, court asks state

Mumbai: The Bombay high court has asked the state to file reply stating the number of vehicles being registered per day and whether the buyers of new cars have sufficient parking space in the city. The directions were issued after the petitioner Bhagwanji Raiyani, complained that the increasing number of vehicles in the city was posing a threat to the environment as well as the quality of life and no measures were being taken by the government to curb it.

A division bench of justices Naresh Patil and Nitin Sambre was hearing the public interest litigation seeking directions to the government and the traffic department to curb the increasing number of vehicles in the city which had gone up by almost 50 per cent in the past six years. The petition said that while the roads remained unchanged since 1975 the vehicular population in the city had gone up drastically since then and if this was not stopped there would be no room to walk in five years time.

While appearing in-person, the 80-year-old Mr Raiyani told the court that while in the 1960’s there were only thirty vehicles in Borivali the number had gone upto 20,000 today and in the 1970’s there were 100 vehicles in Juhu Vile Parle Development Scheme but today the number has surged to 30,000. “While the roads remain the same, the increased vehicular population has resulted in the roads becoming narrower and commuting difficult,” said Mr Raiyani. He prayed that unless something was done there would be no roads left.

He also complained that though the case was going on since the past three years, none of the respondent authorities which included the state, joint police commissioner (traffic), Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation or Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority had done anything about his requests to address the issue of vehicles.   

After hearing Raiyani’s submissions the court said that it would hear the compilations of the Amicus Curiae in the next hearing and also directed the state to file its replies on various issues pertaining to availability of parking spaces in the city. The matter has been posted for February 16.