RK PURAM battles overcrowding, pressure on resources
A combination of affluent neighbourhoods, slum clusters and villages forms the constituency of RK Puram, one of the largest establishments in Delhi. Home to Central Government employees and Tamil Brahmins, this constituency is divided into 13 sectors and is well connected by DTC buses. It constitutes of upscale areas such as Anand Niketan,
RK Puram and Vasant Vihar on one hand and slum clusters and villages such as Munirka and Mohammadpur on the other. “There are community centres in all sectors and cleanliness is maintained. Water supply is also adequate and timely,” said Sujata, a government employee living in RK Puram Sector 3 expressing satisfaction with the services. In the 13 sectors of RK Puram that houses Government servants, residents are happy with the work done so far but habitants of the slum clusters and villages have a contrasting story to tell.
The issues in this co-existence of upscale areas with villages are diverse. Residents in Munirka village, Mohammadpur village and other slum clusters nearby are jostling with perpetual water problem and cannot stop complaining about the irregular supply and poor quality of water.
The perennial problem of parking which has been an unforgiving folly for residents in most of the city has not been any kind to the residents of RK Puram and Munirka. With the overcrowded population of these areas, the space to park vehicles remains a big question mark. A common concern remains the increasing pressure on existing infrastructure because of the exploding population.
“Parking remains the biggest problem in the area. Some headway has been made but a lot remains to be done,” said Yashpal Tokas, manager of a Government bank and a resident of Munirka village.
Malviya Nagar’s issues are just as polarised
Juxtaposed with upscale localities and villages, South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar is a constituency of stark contrasts. Where areas like Hauz Khas, Green Park and Geetanjali Enclave boast of swanky bungalows and shops — the chock-a-block existence of its urban villages like Khirki Village and Begampur reflect the austere life led by its inhabitants. Owing to the wide socio-economic disparity in this area, issues faced by locals in the Malviya Nagar Assembly constituency too are poles apart.
Parking is a major issue for the residents of planned areas like Shivalik, Green Park and Hauz Khas. More importantly, the infrastructure of the opulent Hauz Khas Village, where the prices have shot through the roof over the years, is unable to cope up with the pressure of footfall.\\ “Parking is highly inadequate here. The situation begins to worsen evening onwards when all youngsters and party-goers begin to throng the place. It is a total chaos,” said Ajay Bhatia, a resident of Hauz Khas Village.
People residing on either sides of the Shivalik Road in Geetanjali Enclave and Shivalik Colony are satisfied with the civic infrastructure, but are fed up of regular traffic snarls on the road. “The road is narrow and many vehicles take this route. Traffic signals often don’t work resulting in chaos and jams,” said Romila Punjabi, a resident of Geetanjali Enclave. Several residents of the main Malviya Nagar residential area also complained about low pressure of water. “Water comes on time, but at times the pressure is too low. As a result, we cannot fill adequate amount of water,” they said.
Just across the road of an ostentatious mall in Saket is Khirki Village, which comprises a series of matchbox houses — all cramped in a dingy and dirty background. “Sewage is the main problem we face. They overflow most of the time. We complain they come and unblock it, but within hours, it is back to square one. Rain worsens the scenario further as there is waterlogging everywhere,” said Sushma Devi, a resident of Khirki Village. The Malviya Nagar constituency has been a stronghold of the Congress, which has fielded its Minister of Education Kiran Walia fourth time in a row for the seat. Meanwhile, the BJP has nominated a strong contender, former mayor Arti Mehra, for the same.