New departmental store draws in crowds at Kharghar, jams roads

NAVI MUMBAI: Residents of Kharghar Sector-12 have been complaining of frequent traffic congestion in the area, especially in front of a newly-opened departmental store. As there is no proper parking in the area, autos and cars park haphazardly, leading to traffic jams.
Sunita Yadav, a resident of Chaitanya society, said, “Due to lack of parking space, autos and cars parked their vehicles anyhow, causing jams on Pandhav –Khada –Reliance Smart road.”
Bina Gogri, a social activist, said, “The food mart had recently announced a slash in rates as part of their sale promotion.This led to a huge rush. The store does not even provide parking facility for their customers.” Meanwhile Bhagwan Patil, ward officer of Kharghar, said, “I personally took down the hoardings that were installed by the store on the footpath. Why is there no parking space inside the departmental store premises. The authorities should have looked into all these problems before giving a go ahead to construct the store.”
Meanwhile, Pravin Pande, police inspector (traffic) said, “We have already booked many car owners and are trying our best to bring the situation under control. I have dashed out letters to Cidco planning department. We are waiting for a reply.”