After getting no response from politicians and concerned Government institutions on banning private vehicles from February 1 in the Inner and Middle circles of world’s most popular and oldest commercial centre — Connaught Place — the New Delhi Traders’ Association (NDTA) has taken to Facebook to raise their voice against the proposed move.
Speaking to The Pioneer, Paras Khurana, owner of a petrol pump in the Middle Circle and NDTA member, said that traders beyond the NCR boundaries have signed a petition against the move. “More than 1,500 traders have joined hands with us while 200 traders have signed online petition,” said Khurana.
It may be noted, the NDTA has written several letters to Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD), MP from New Delhi constituency Meenkashi lekhi and the Delhi Government but in vain. “Petrol pumps will incur huge losses, once the idea is implemented. On average each petrol pump will suffer Rs 20,000 per day,” said Khurana who is also handling social media for the NDTA.
Although the corporation is yet to take clearance from the MoUD if this plan will be executed, the traders will face colossal loss in their businesses. “Why the corporation is not realising that such a plan will not work for our country. The architecture of CP area is entirely different; how traffic will flow. We had faced it on Yoga Day,” said the NDTA member.
“Bizarre, the NDMC is not giving a thought about the petrol pumps location. How people will reach at them. Will they park their cars at Hanuman Mandir first and then come for the fuel at petrol pumps stationIJ” Khurana said.
Not only the petrol Pump owners but other shop owners too are opposing NDMC’s “impractical” idea. “In the name of smart city project, NDMC is trying to kill our business. They have planned such a step without weighing the pros and cons”, said Khurana, questioning the very idea of prohibiting cars from entering into Inner and Middle Circles of CP.
Being a commercial hub, more than 5,000 offices are situated in the two circles of CP, there are162 shops of apparel and old jewellery items. “There are 20 jewellery shops in CP and hundreds of customers visit these shops every day. It is just an attempt to dissuade our patrons by the NDMC,” he added.
“The agency should think what they have done for the safety of the customers and traders here. It is a bitter truth, the largest and expensive market of India has no CCTV coverage”, Khurana further said.
To lodge our protest and to reach out to the Government of the day and customers, traders have opted social networking platform where they are signing the petition against Pedestrisation move.
It may be recalled that the plan was discussed on January 5 in a meeting of NDMC officials, chaired by Union Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu. And it was officially announced that to make Connaught Place area pedestrian friendly, by not allowing cars and in the Middle and Inner Circles.
Meanwhile, officials with the Urban Development Ministry claimed that the three-month “pedestrianisation” of the area, which has the city’s most recognisable heritage structures, will test the effects on traffic, management of reclaimed parking lots, and record the experience of the pedestrians and shop owners. However, NDMC is not in a position to implement this scheme from February 1 as they had declared earlier. The plan has been deferred as of now as the council officials have failed to tie the loose ends of this much publicised scheme to “decongest CP”, sources said on Friday.