Safety of Sector 70 residents at risk due to lack of streetlights

Gurugram: The absence of streetlights along the road leading to sectors 70 and 70A is putting the safety of residents at stake

Gurugram: The absence of streetlights along the road leading to sectors 70 and 70A is putting the safety of residents at stake. At least four residents have been robbed of their cash and belongings while returning home from the office late in the night.

Gurugram, India-February 11, 2023: A dark view of the street near Spaze residential society due to non working streetlights at Sector 70, in Gurugram, India, on Saturday, 11 February 2023. (Photo by Parveen Kumar/Hindustan Times)

Residents have alleged that they have complained to the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (MCG) officials several times but to avail. Meanwhile, officials said tenders have been approved and streetlights will be installed at the earliest.

Residents said they grapple with darkness every night as streetlights are either dysfunctional or patchy on the entire stretch on the Southern Peripheral Road (SPR). This not only causes inconvenience to travellers, but also gives anti-socials a free run, they added.

There are eight housing societies in sectors 70 and 70A and more than 5,000 families reside here.

The MCG installed 80,000 LED streetlights across the city over the last two years, but there are many spots which have no streetlights and continue to be a cause of concern for residents as well as law enforcement agencies as they remain prone to accidents, snatching and theft.

Jaswant Singh, the residents’ welfare association (RWA) president of BPTP Astaire Gardens in Sector 70A said that it has been months since they urged the MCG to install lights but there has been no response. “The residents, especially women, do not feel safe to travel on this stretch as hooligans drink and drive here and have tried to intercept vehicles of a few residents. There have been four instances where masked men have robbed residents of cash and valuables by taking advantage of the dark,” he said.

Aditi Sethi, a resident of Paras Irene housing society said residents are having a harrowing time in the absence of streetlights in the area. “The road was developed in 2021 and since then there has been zero development. It is scary to commute on this stretch after dark as there are hardly any policemen patrolling the area,” she said.

Residents alleged that regular complaints have been made to the authorities but all their pleas have fallen on deaf ears.

Singh said that women in the area request their neighbours or RWA to arrange a security guard to travel with them in cabs if they are travelling alone at night. “There have been a few cases of carjacking, snatching and harassment in the past due to the dark spots. We have also advised residents to keep their families posted and share their live locations while crossing the stretch from Vatika Chowk,” he said.

Shweta Sharma, a resident of Sector 70A said, “Streetlights are defunct due to lack of maintenance by the civic authority. There is a liquor shop on the route towards our society and people drink in the open or inside their parked cars on the road. They often pass comments. If authorities do not take timely action, the situation will worsen”.

MCG commissioner PC Meena said they have asked their teams to conduct a survey of the areas that are not well lit and prepare a list accordingly. “We will soon start installing LED lights in the area and will also request police to start night patrolling for the safety of residents,” he said.

Preet Pal Sangwan, assistant commissioner of police, said starting Saturday, they have deployed two teams that will do night patrol in the area. Also, a PCR van from Badshahpur police station will be stationed near the societies to keep a check on anti-social activities. “Our teams are scanning CCTV footage to identify suspects involved in snatching and robbery cases,” he said.