CUTTACK: The congested lanes and roads of the millennium city speak volumes of the administration's apathy towards its residents. Despite the government's stress on steps to decongest the city, illegal parking remains a challenge here and lack of enforcement by the police has only made matters worse.
Naya Sarak is one of the several localities in the city where haphazardly parked vehicles have blocked the roads. The busy market at Naya Sarak with vehicles parked on the road has made travelling to Jaunliapati locality an uphill task. Irked over the state of affairs, the residents of Jaunliapati have sought police assistance to curb the menace of illegal parking in order to streamline traffic to their locality.
In a representation to Cuttack DCP Prateek Singh, the residents stated that a portion of the Naya Sarak road from Satya Narayan temple to Anand Snacks via Pipaleswar temple has been encroached upon by two-wheelers parked haphazardly on the road.
The illegal parking has choked the two entry points to Jaunliapati as a result of which the residents have been facing problems while travelling on Hemaraj Lane in front of the Satya Narayan temple and Jain Mandir lane.
The residents said under such circumstances, vehicles like ambulances and fire tenders cannot reach their locality on time during emergencies. "We had requested the then Cuttack DCP Sanjeev Arora in 2016 to address the issue following which a one-way traffic system was introduced on the busy Naya Sarak road. It had come as a relief for us. But the problem resurfaced after the system was scrapped by his successor," said Prakash Agarwal, a resident of Jaunliapati.
DCP Singh said that necessary steps would be taken to address the issue of illegal parking at Naya Sarak soon.