Mumbaikars on Tuesday prepared themselves for a major traffic disruption on Wednesday, when an estimated five Maratha community members across Maharashtra take out a massive “mook” morcha (silent march) from Jeejamata Udyan at Byculla to Azad Maidan in South Mumbai.
Though the Maratha morcha will be confined to the busy stretch of south Mumbai, there will be traffic disruptions all across Mumbai and satellite towns of Thane and Navi Mumbai since the people will descend on the country’s commercial capital from different parts of the state. The city police have made elaborate preparations across Mumbai to ensure smooth passage of Wednesday’s morcha. Nearly 7,000 traffic police personnel will be deployed along the morcha route.
“There will traffic diversions. Important roads will either remain closed for traffic or made one-way, while arterial roads will be opened to ensure smooth passage for the procession participants,” Deputy Commissioner of Police and Mumbai police spokesperson Rashmi Karandkiar said.
The traffic police will be using social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp and FM radios to provide updates on traffic to lakhs of office-goers who may be stuck in traffic during peak morning and evening hours.
“To ensure against school children getting stranded at many police because traffic disruptions, the schools in south Mumbai will remain closed,” State Education Minister Vinod Tawde said.
There is also likelihood of schools in south-central and north-central Mumbai remaining closed on Wednesday.
The Marathas, working under the banner of Maratha Kranti Morcha, have been organising such “silent” morchas in major towns and cities across the state since August last year, demanding among other things reservations in education and jobs for their community members and scrapping of the “misused” SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.