All bus stops along BRTS removed, HC told; panel flags other traffic issues

Indore: A high court-appointed committee confirmed on Monday that all bus stops along the Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) corridors in the city have been removed marking a key compliance milestone to a previous order. However, the panel's report flagged several persisting traffic concerns that continue to affect the city's commuters.The committee, headed by senior advocate Girish Patwardhan, submitted its findings before the bench of Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla and Justice Alok Awasthi in a batch of writ petitions.While acknowledging the removal of the bus stops, the committee noted that the BRTS corridor between Bholaram Ustad Marg Square and Holkar College remains largely unutilised by the general public, owing to flyovers constructed at Bhanwarkuan and Holkar College.Officials from the city administration traffic committee, the Indore Municipal Corporation and the Indore Development Authority, who interacted with the panel, assured coordination to address the issue.The additional DCP (traffic) was separately flagged the condition of Vijay Nagar Square, in front of the local police station, where parked and seized vehicles are obstructing the right of way for citizens. He assured the committee that corrective action would follow.The panel also drew attention to the poor condition of the service road near the Satya Sai Square bridge built by the PWD, pointing to potholes and the absence of a proper layer between sections of the road.Indore collector Shivam Verma, IMC commissioner Kshitij Singhal and IDA representative Mini Ravindran assured full cooperation in resolving the cited traffic hazards. The collector also informed the court that religious structures on public roads hampering traffic flow have been identified and that a list of such structures would be filed in court before the next hearing.A significant concern raised in the report was the shortage of traffic police personnel — against a sanctioned strength of 881, only 660 personnel are currently deployed, leaving a deficit of 221. The court directed the state's counsel to bring this to the attention of the principal secretary, home department and the director general of police for remedial action.The matter has been listed for further hearing on May 7, 2026, when the collector, IMC commissioner and the DCP (traffic) have been directed to remain present in court.