You may be tempted to call it a temporary relief and not a permanent solution, but T. Nagar most residents are too happy with the announcement to view it in that light. Hawkers in and around Ranganathan Street and Railway Border Road have been asked to vacate on a temporary basis to facilitate free movement of shoppers.
“To some extent, the encroachment has been cleared on the congested Ranganathan Street. Only now can one see the real width of the road. All these changes have been made to ensure a hassle-free movement of shoppers surging on T. Nagar for the festival,” says V.S. Jayaraman of T. Nagar Residents Welfare Association.
The measure has been taken by the T. Nagar Police Station (law and order) and will be in force until the festival is over.
“This has been done to allow shoppers to move around freely. Separate space has not been allocated for road-side vendors. This has been done to allow better crowd management by police and will also benefit shoppers,” says a police official, adding that an extra 10 feet space is available for shoppers now on the street.
But some residents say such one-off efforts will bring about no change in T. Nagar. “The police would win our appreciation only if they enforce this on other days too. For T. Nagar, every day is a festival day. So, there is no point making elaborate arrangements only during festive occasions,” says Jayaraman.
