Students demand FoB on Road no. 3

A student of Muffakkam Jah College was hit by a car

Students of Sultan ul Uloom educational society stage a protest in front of the college, demanding construction of a foot-over-bridge outside their campus on road no 2 Banjara Hills after a female student met with an accident while crossing the road on Friday. -Photo: G. Ramakrishna

A vehicle zooming past a pedestrian missing the body by a whisker is a very common sight on this stretch.

Throughout the day, students of educational institution and customers and employees of a number of commercial establishments that lie on either side of the busy Road No. 3, Banjara Hills road gamble with their life whenever they try to cross the road.

Friday too was no different but one accident and scores of students took it upon themselves to let the authorities hear their plight by spilling on to the streets. A girl student of Muffakkam Jah College of Engineering was hit by a speeding car outside their campus at around 9 pm. The cab driver, who fled the scene without stopping the car, was chased by students while the injured student was rushed to hospital. Within no time, about 300 students gathered on the road and took out a rally holding banners and raising slogans demanding the construction of a Foot over Bridge (FoB). They stopped traffic for a few minutes in a bid to highlight the necessity of a FoB on the stretch.

“FoB’s are being built outside many colleges and schools in this city then what is preventing the authorities from constructing one outside our college,” said one protesting student of civil engineering branch.

“Innumerable accidents have taken place on this road. It is a scary experience to cross the road and we hope the government listens to us.”

A couple of days ago, the students started a campaign and gathered 1500 signatures and even submitted it to the Deputy Chief Minister Mahmood Ali with an appeal to help build a FoB.

The college management too had written a letter to the GHMC requesting the same. “We have written to the GHMC thrice to sanction a FoB on this road,” said Banjara Hills Traffic ACP, Masoom Basha.

“It is a very accident prone road and a FoB is needed urgently. But we have not received any positive response from the GHMC.” Though there was a proposal to build a FoB at this location in the past, it has been put on the backburner. Even after repeated attempts, GHMC officials could not be reached for a comment on the issue.