Mangaluru, April 14, 2017: Reports confirm that business establishments that have reserved roadside parking slots in the city will have to discontinue such practices, Mayor Kavita Sanil gave them a 10-day deadline to remove the chains and “customers only” parking boards.
Mayor Kavita Sanil said roadside parking outside commercial establishments cannot be reserved. It belonged to the government and all members of society could park their vehicles there.
Narrating her own experience before assuming charge as Mayor, she said a security guard had objected for parking her vehicle outside a medical shop stating that only customers could park there. However, Mayor Sanil did not make it clear as to who people could complain to in case of such incidents and what exactly the civic body would do. “You wait and see,” she said.
The Mayor said that if the tenants or owners of business establishments did not meet the deadline, the corporation officials would remove the chains and boards. She said reserved parking slots had inconvenienced many.
To a question on residents of Red Building locality in Valencia objecting to the proposed road widening project, Mayor Sanil said the council of the corporation had already approved the project. However, an agency was conducting a survey to assess the extent of properties required for the project. The corporation would take a decision based on findings of the survey, that is expected to be completed in a week.
I congratulate the Mayor for bringing up this important point as over the last 8 years I have had rub-ins with watchmen for this very same reason- in fact in front of a bank on KS Rao Road I had parked my car, done 5 mins of work in the bank and then walked across to the Mall on the opposite for maybe 15/20 mins only to find that two of my car tyres were deflated by the watchman who brazenly told me that he saw me going to the Mall. The bank staff were idle bystanders. I spent Rs 150/- plus 1 hr time getting the tyres attended to. I am a senior citizen in my 70s.