The widening and four-laning of the old National Highway 17, from Fr Agnelo Ashram to Carmel College, is progressing rapidly.
The stretch from the Ashram to the Tata showroom now has a median that is fully barricaded, leaving no space” not even a foot” at regular intervals for pedestrians to cross.
This poses a major inconvenience, especially for students of the nearby schools and the engineering college, which collectively have around six thousand students.
The elderly and differently-abled are forced to use an underpass that is poorly maintained, dimly lit, and lacks security cameras, making it a hotspot for criminal activities such as theft, molestation, and assault.
It is crucial that the PWD and its contractors take pedestrian safety into account while executing these development projects.
