Settlers pose security threat

The excitement of having the first flyover in the city, with cars criss-crossing in full speed has since died down. The complaints of traffic snarls and dug-up roads in Gariahat are subsiding too.
Now it’s a problem of a different kind that people of the area are facing, with street urchins and vagabonds settling in the space under the Gariahat flyover.And this is something that is not just adversely affecting trade in this retail district, but is also posing as a safety threat for the residents of the area. Sample this.
18-year-old Mishti Bhowmick had got off a bus near the Gariahat flyover at 9.30 pm last week. Walking towards her house towards Swinhoe Street was a nightmare. “Two drunken men, obviously beggars, suddenly emerged from under the flyover and began to fight. One hurled a brick at the other which almost hit me,� she remembered.
Swapan Mallick, who owns a shop bang opposite the flyover has yet another story to tell. “For one, they cook, clean and use this place even as a toilet. Moreover, the rag-pickers dump their collection right on the road, which is an eye-sore for any shopper. Imagine a person from Mumbai visiting our shops and seeing this mess,� he cribbed. And that’s not all.
“Often when they fight amongst themselves they use filthy language which becomes a cause for embarrassment for us in front of our customers,� said Sujit Saha, another shop-owner of the area.
Interestingly, the local police claim that they have information about the urchins and illegal settlers under the flyover, but can never find them when they raid the area. “We had visited the place a month back, but besides a few rags and some dumps of papers, we found nothing,� said an official of the Gariahat police station. “It’s true that the police have visited the place in order to vacate it, but just before they arrive, the urchins get wind of the visit and immediately leave with most of their belongings,� said Mrinal Ghosh, a local resident.
“We have no information about this,� said Chairman of the Hooghly River Bridge Commission, Swapan Chokroborty, the body that is responsible for the upkeep of the flyover till the completion of the flyover and its adjoining areas.
Meanwhile, authorities at the Kolkata Municipal Corporation suggest that they will take up the matter once the HRBC officially hands over the flyover to them. “Only then will we think of vacating the space and beautifying it. Till then it’s the responsibility of HRBC to maintain the area,� said member, mayor-in-council, roads, Anup Chatterjee.
himika.chaudhuri@timesgroup.com