- Need permanent solution to encroachment

By Anjali Subedi Thapa
The news came as relief for the public that the administration had, once again, resolved to improve parking on the Paltan Bazaar road, more effectively, and undertake monitoring regularly in order to smoothen the flow of traffic and the crowd. Parking the vehicles on the two sides of the road, alternatively, showed results, till such time the vigilance was maintained. However, this remained effective for just a few days and, now, with the monitoring team taking it easy, violations of the rule are evident. Theliwalas have not stopped covering almost half of the road, neither do the two-wheeler owners care to follow the rule while parking. Pedestrians and customers desperately wait to see things improved, not for a few days, but permanently.
Paltan Bazaar and Ghantaghar are considered to be the centre of Dehradun. So, keeping the area clean and the traffic well-managed needs to be a matter of serious concern for the authorities, as well as the people. But, the encroachment, which is rampant in many other parts of the city as well, has imparted a totally unnecessary ugliness to the place. The administration has not been able to solve the problem even eight years after formation of the separate state of Uttarakhand, with Dehradun being its provisional capital. The lack of sincere effort on this issue remains unfortunate.
Dehradun is still growing and developing into a much crowded and migratory centre. People from all around the state are continuing to pour in here, as also from some border districts of UP. In such situation, a measure such as the one applied in Paltan Bazaar is not a permanent solution to the problem. The city also faces the obstacle of a fractured and shabbily connected infrastructure, which is posing a serious problem in its development and growth. The regular influx of the people from around the state has not just increased the density of traffic, but has also resulted in encroachment on government lands and forest areas by the people. With all this, the once quite and serene place and an attraction for tourists from all over the country is, now, gradually losing its natural environment and peace.
Although it is not possible to fully recover the freshness and beauty of the valley, further destruction can be and should be prevented. Encroachment, which is the mother of multiple problems, needs to be tackled seriously and urgently. These encroachments can be clearly seen in Paltan Bazaar, the Raipur-Dalanwala road and riversides, among other sites. The situation on the banks of various rivers of the city, which ought to be the major environmental attraction, has turned so pathetic that slums have come up in large numbers. The rivers themselves have been turned into small drains.
For the sake of the vote banks, neither the present nor the previous government has cared to make improvement. But, if the government stays silent on such issues, how can it ever develop the state? Without ensuring basic infrastructure and systems, it would merely be a far-fetched dream for the Doonites to live in a good place. Both, the government and the people, should join hands in this campaign and without delay.