BMC launches drive against unused vehicles parked on roadsides, asks owners to remove them within 7 days 

The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) is going to get rid of unused vehicles parked on roadsides across the city. 

Hundreds of such vehicles can be found parked in lanes and bylanes across the city, with a thick layer of dust on them. The civic body says these abandoned vehicles are causing obstruction for the sanitation workers who are not able to clean the drains and roads properly.

These vehicles are also potential breeding grounds for mosquitoes, besides degrading the aesthetics of the city and damaging the reputation of the city. 

Coming down hard on such vehicle owners, the BMC has issued a notification asking them to remove their unused vehicles from the roadsides within seven days. In this regard, on behalf of the BMC, notices have also been pasted on such vehicles in many areas. 

“For any failure to comply with the directions set forth in this notice will lead to action against you by way of seizure of the property and initiation of auction of your property to utilize the same as charges towards removal in exercise of the powers conferred to the Corporation under Section 24 (xvi), Section 437 and Section 674 of the Orissa Municipal Corporation Act, 2003,” read the notice. 

Taking to its Twitter handle, the civic body informed, “Defunct vehicles lying on the roads will be removed. Notice has been pasted on the vehicles that within 7 days if the owners didn’t take it to their private place, then BMC will lift it and clear the area.” 

Informing about the move, BMC Mayor Sulochana Das said, “As our efforts are on to make Bhubaneswar a clean city, we feel sorry to see some vehicle owners leaving their unused vehicles parked by the roadsides in many parts of the city. Because of this, the drains or areas under them can’t be cleaned properly. Antisocial elements are also using these vehicles as their hideouts. To get the city rid of these unused vehicles, the BMC has issued a notice that if the vehicle owners don’t remove their vehicles from the roadsides action would be taken against them.”

Meanwhile, city dwellers welcomed the BMC’s move. 

“The BMC should have taken this step earlier. While these vehicles have encroached upon open roads, criminals are using them as their hiding place. We welcome the move, but it remains to be seen how effectively it is being implemented,” said Dilip Kumar Sahu, general secretary, Sailashree Vihar Development Council.