Campaigning for LS elections adds to Punekars’ traffic woes

With the summer season at its peak and above-normal temperatures in the city for the past week, campaigning is being done in such a manner so as to avoid the harsh Sun

While candidates across political parties have started campaigning for the Lok Sabha (LS) elections to be held on May 13 in Pune and bike rallies, marches and roadshows have become commonplace, they have only added to the citizens’ traffic woes.

Campaigning during the morning and evening hours is helping the candidates attract the attention of as many people as possible. (MAHENDRA KOLHE/ HT PHOTO)

Four candidates have filed nominations from the Pune LS constituency including Murlidhar Mohol from the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP); Ravindra Dhangekar from the Congress; Vasant More from the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA); and colonel Suresh Patil (retired) who is contesting the elections independently. Both the BJP and Congress have started campaigning with political rallies being held in different state assembly constituencies in the mornings and evenings. With the summer season at its peak and above-normal temperatures in the city for the past week, campaigning is being done in such a manner so as to avoid the harsh Sun. Moreover, campaigning during the morning and evening hours is helping the candidates attract the attention of as many people as possible.

On the flip side however, all this campaigning is adding to the traffic congestion in the city with the situation being the worst in areas such as Sahakarnagar, Sinhagad Road, Bharati Vidyapith, University Road and the central parts of the city where road repair/construction is also underway.

Yogesh Walve, a resident from Parvati, said that there was traffic congestion in their area for at least two hours due to the political rallies. Furthermore, when these candidates stopped to meet people, other members parked their vehicles haphazardly, adding to the traffic jam. Walve said that proper planning should be carried out to prevent traffic jams in areas where the roads are not wide enough.

Archana Thorat, a resident of Kasba Peth, said, “Political rallies must be organised with discipline. Youngsters participating in the rally are not following discipline while driving and parking their vehicles. Areas where the roads are narrow or have become narrow due to repair and widening work should be avoided. People must take care not to worsen the already bad traffic situation in Pune.”