Udyog Vihar industry owners press HSIIDC to check illegal parking, hawkers after the Anaj Mandi fire incident

A group of industry owners from Udyog Vihar Phase 4 have written to the Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) demanding they

A group of industry owners from Udyog Vihar Phase 4 have written to the Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) demanding they end the practice of unauthorised parking along roads and remove hawkers from the internal roads to allow smooth flow of vehicular traffic. They said action was important to ensure rescue operations can be carried out in case of an accident, such as fire.

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Rajneesh Chanddha, whose letter to the HSIIDC was signed by 12 industry owners on Monday, said, “We want the HSIIDC to inspect these roads and take action. You visit our factories on any working day, the roads are packed with vehicles and hawkers. The situation is pathetic in all five phases of Udyog Vihar. In case there is a fire or a building collapses, no rescue team will be able to reach the spot on time. Why has this situation arrived? Why has the HSIIDC not taken timely action to check unauthorized parking and encroachments? We are worried and want an action from the HSIIDC.”

The HSIIDC is the custodian authority of Udyog Vihar, which is spread over sectors 18-20 between Old Delhi Road and Delhi-Gurugram Expressway from Sirhaul border to Iffco Chowk.

“The HSIIDC is the custodian authority of Udyog Vihar. It must not wait for a Delhi-like situation to unfold before it acts,” Suresh Sharma, industry owner in Phase 4, said.

The industry owners said that for the last three to four years, unauthorised parking and hawkers’ encroachments have grown unchecked.

President of Udyog Vihar Industrial Association, Animesh Saxena, said, “People park their cars on the road because of absence of parking facility. Why does the HSIIDC not think of making a parking zone? In every meeting with the HSIIDC, and with other officials of the Haryana government, we have flagged the parking problem. We want the HSIIDC find a solution. Situation in Udyog Vihar is very much like that in Delhi’s Anaj Mandi.”

The December 8 fire in Delhi’s Anaj Mandi, a highly congested area, claimed the lives of 43 people.

According to the Gurgaon Udyog Association, there are around 5,000 hawkers occupying space along roads across the industrial township.

“We believe there are over 5,000 hawkers who dot Udyog Vihar’s internal roads every day. They choke the roads, block footpaths and affect traffic movement. The HSIIDC and Municipal Corporation of Gurugram should work together to shift hawkers to a designated place away from the roads and pavements,” GUA president Praveen Yadav said.

The HSIIDC developed Udyog Vihar some 30 years ago when the floor area ratio (FAR) was only 75% for a building. Three years ago, FAR was revised to 200%, allowing development of adequate vertical space for a number of factory and IT units located along roads of limited width and other infrastructures. The increase in density, thus caused, has created a traffic nightmare in the area.

“We have written to the MCG to create a vendors’ zone so roads can be cleared of encroachments. As far as, parking is concerned, we will meet the industry owners and convey their demands to the Haryana government. It is a policy matter and I am not competent to comment,” HSIIDC assistant general manager Arun Garg said.

“I will discuss with the project official concerned about creating hawkers’ zone at Udyog Vihar as per policy before I comment on anything in this regard,” MCG joint commissioner Gaurav Antil said.