A police booth remains empty at Bunty bridge crossing on NSC Bose Road

Netaji Subhas Chandra (NSC) Bose Road, connecting Garia to Tollygunge, has turned into every commuter’s nightmare despite having heavyweight political figures as its elected representatives. Mamata Banerjee is the MP, PWD minister Kshiti Goswami and Trinamul leader Aroop Biswas are the MLAs, whereas mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya is the councillor from Naktala to Garia.

Elusive police

“It’s the only road that connects Garia to Tollygunge Metro station. But except at the Bansdroni and Ranikuthi crossings, there are no traffic policemen to be found anywhere,” said Arun Chakraborty, a local resident who also owns a shop near Bunty cinema. “Just a few days back, a man in his 30s was run over near Sriguru Ashram stop by a speeding lorry. He was in an auto seated on the right of the driver. Better policing can ensure that autos don’t take passengers beyond the stipulated number and certainly not on the front seat, to the right of the driver,” said Suryo Subho Bandopadhyay, a local resident.

When Metro visited the stretch around noon on November 17, four policemen were found at the Bansdroni intersection. Nowhere else could a single policeman be spotted. It was only at Bansdroni that there were some guard rails that divided the road into two flanks.

Parking woes

The 205 and 205A bus stands create traffic jam near Bansdroni

Parking is a major problem here. The stretch has terminuses of buses plying on three separate routes. The 205 and 205A bus stands are on both sides of the road near Bansdroni, 41A has its terminus between Gachtala and Netaji Nagar and Naktala-Howrah mini buses remain parked near Bunty cinema. “During peak hours it takes nearly 20 minutes to get past the Bansdroni crossing. Also there is a large vat near Bansdroni market. There are three schools in that area. The situation is very chaotic,” said Bandopadhyay. At the Bunty cinema bus stop, two hearse vans of Meera Seva Kendra remain parked through the day along with a few taxis and a goods vehicle. Near Laxmi Narayan Colony bus stand, the eastern flank of the footpath has an open vat. Besides, some tree logs and a few dumpers occupy the footpath. “Throughout the stretch from Garia to Bansdroni, vehicles are parked on both sides of the road. The footpaths remain occupied by hawkers. The pedestrians are forced to walk on the road. It’s really terrifying as buses speed along the road and the autos are very unruly,” added Chakraborty. “One of the ways for private vehicles to enter the other side of Tolly’s Nullah (Tolly’s Nullah runs parallel to NSC Bose Road) is through a small overbridge near Bunty cinema. But the autos keep standing at the intersection and create traffic congestion.”

A garbage vat at Naktala on NSC Bose Road

Policespeak: “Yes I am aware of the problems of NSC Bose Road. But we can’t increase any policing till our resources increase. We are running short of manpower,” said Ajey Ranade, the superintendent of police, South 24-Parganas. NSC Bose Road falls under the jurisdiction of the South 24 -Parganas police.

Unionspeak: “The transport department has a plan to shift all bus stands that are on main roads,” said Jahar Ghosal, a senior leader of the Bus and Minibus Worker’s Union, affiliated to Citu.

MLAspeak: “The road is under the jurisdiction of the PWD department. I am just an MLA and the chairman of Borough 10. I can hardly do anything. A meeting was held with all the top police officers of the area eight to nine months back. Policing in areas under the supervision of the West Bengal Police is miserable,” said MLA Aroop Biswas, whose constituency covers a stretch of the road.

PWD minister Kshiti Goswami, whose constituency covers the stretch from Garia crossing to Usha fire brigade station, pleaded helplessness. “Yes there is a problem of parking. But where do these buses stand? Besides, the population of Garia has shot up tremendously over the years. The number of private vehicles, buses and autorickshaws has increased accordingly. The situation will be even worse after the Metro Railway starts running till Garia. There will be Metro stations along the route. We had thought about creating another road connecting Garia to Tollygunge but that is also not feasible. The only way out is to install railings dividing the road into two flanks. But then again pedestrians have the habit of crossing through gaps between the railings,” said Goswami.

Subhajoy Roy
Pictures by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya