Gurugram locals meet MLA, demand gate at sector road near Delhi border

A delegation of Sector 21 and Dundahera village residents met Badshahpur MLA and Cabinet Minister for Environment and Forest Departments Rao Narbir Singh recently, demanding that a gate on a sector road on the Sector 21-Bijwasan (Delhi) border be constructed. Residents said thousands of commercial vehicles commuted on the stretch of the road daily instead of going through the main road to evade entry tax.

Will deploy gatekeepers 24x7

We will deploy gatekeepers 24x7 to provide easy access to area residents living on both sides of the border and prevent the flow of commercial vehicles, whose drivers evade entry tax. — Prakash Lamba, president, Sector 21 Residents Welfare Association

This practice was posing dangers to the lives of area residents, they claimed.

Talking to the minister, delegation members said the construction of the gate had been underway in the presence of a designated duty magistrate and local police personnel; however, it was halted midway on Thursday. One of the residents then removed the gate, which had been affixed with the help of a grinder, residents alleged. The delegation further claimed that the approval to construct the gate was accorded by the mobility wing of the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) and traffic wing of the Police Department keeping in mind the safety and wellbeing of the area residents. Sector-21 Residents Welfare Association president Prakash Lamba said the situation had deteriorated severely, and the lives of area residents had been affected.

Locals found it difficult commute from their homes amid heavy traffic jams in the area.

He told the minister that the construction work on the gate commenced after a comprehensive study by the traffic police, who monitored traffic patterns during various times of the day.

The mobility wing of the GMDA conducted a detailed assessment of traffic flow, challenges and solutions while the Haryana Shahri Vikas Pradhikaran evaluated local conditions and infrastructure limitations after multiple site visits, he added. He said over 10,000 commercial and non-commercial vehicles — including taxis and large trucks going to Nazafgarh, Dwarka, Janak Puri, Tilak Nagar, Rohini and other areas of West Delhi — passed through narrow sector roads every day, jeopardising lives of residents.

The delegation also told the minister that 15-18 ft canter trucks had caused many accidents and damaged several houses in the past.

Since the sector road was used by commercial vehicles to avoid paying entry tax at the Delhi border, this was also causing financial losses to the government, residents added.

The residents said their main objectives to construct the gate were to regulate the flow of traffic, reduce the influx of commercial vehicles on to narrow sector roads/lanes, ensure the safety of residents, avoid frequent accidents and damage to property, prevent damage to the narrow roads, and preserve the environment

Singh, after listening to the residents’ grievances, said he would talk to the district magistrate and other officials concerned about the issue, and would take appropriate action keeping in view of the safety of area residents.