Makeshift parking arrangements at the Legislature Building during the Assembly session !

More than 300 vehicles, yet not even a basic parking layout

Mr Pritam Nachankar, Special Correspondent, Sanatan Prabhat, Mumbai

Vehicles parked without any organised layout

Mumbai, 24 June : The Monsoon Session of the Maharashtra Legislature is currently underway. However, there is not even a basic layout for parking vehicles during the session. For many years, parking arrangements during legislative sessions have continued in this makeshift manner. The absence of proper planning for vehicle parking during the Legislature session reflects not only poorly on the Traffic Police but also on the inefficiency of the Legislature administration.

Waterlogged entrance to the parking area due to potholes

A total of 366 legislators—288 members of the Legislative Assembly and 78 members of the Legislative Council—attend the session. Most of them arrive in their own vehicles. In addition, convoys of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council, the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Ministers, and vehicles of senior government officials are also present. Altogether, more than 300 vehicles are parked outside the Legislature Building during the session.

Existing arrangements

During the session, parking spaces are reserved with signboards for the vehicles of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, the Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council, the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Ministers, and other Ministers. These reserved spaces are located along the compound wall outside the Legislature Building. Parking for MLAs and other dignitaries is arranged further ahead. Although ample parking space is available, the absence of a proper layout results in vehicles being parked in a haphazard manner.

Traffic Police point out the difficulties

There are potholes at the entrance to the parking area, causing waterlogging during the monsoon. The parking area needs to be levelled by filling these potholes. Only two Traffic Police personnel are deployed to manage the parking of MLAs’ vehicles. As there are no replacement personnel during meal breaks, they have to eat while remaining at their posts, some Traffic Police personnel told the Sanatan Prabhat correspondent.

Current situation

1. There is no marked parking layout. Temporary barricades are placed only to reserve parking for dignitaries.

2. There are potholes at the entrance to the MLAs’ parking area, leading to waterlogging during the rains. The surface needs to be levelled by filling the potholes.

3. Improperly parked vehicles sometimes make it difficult for other vehicles to exit, while also wasting available space. More than 15 abandoned vehicles in scrap condition are lying within the parking area. Removing them would free up additional parking space.

Suggested measures

1. Vehicles entering the MLAs’ parking area are registered at the entrance by two Traffic Police personnel. On the first day of the session, 22 June, 185 vehicles entered the parking area, while on 23 June the number increased to 207. As the available space is insufficient compared to the number of MLAs, only one vehicle per MLA is permitted to enter the parking area.

2. If the parking area is properly marked and each parking space is assigned a number, with drivers receiving a corresponding parking token at the entrance, vehicles can be parked systematically in sequence.

3. The State’s administrative headquarters should ideally serve as a model of well-organised parking management by the Traffic Department. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Both the Traffic Department and the Legislature administration need to address this issue with the seriousness it deserves.