Kondhwa residents meet police, demand action against late-night eateries, bike racing by youngsters and more

Pune: Residents of Pargenagar in Kondhwa raised concerns about late-night operations of local cafes, reckless driving by minors, illegal parking and nuisance by miscreants during a meeting with the police and traffic department on Saturday.

The area residents alleged that cafés and eateries operating beyond permissible hours have become a growing problem and warned that the situation could eventually trigger law and order issues if timely action is not taken. The meeting was organised by the Pargenagar Kondhwa Residents Association (PKRA) and attended by members of various housing societies from the area.

Minor miscreants, parking woes

Musarrat Khan, a resident of DSK Garden Enclave society, said the condition in the locality has worsened considerably over the past one-and-a-half years. “Underage boys are often seen loitering around cafés and paan shops till late at night. We suspect that apart from cigarettes, vapes and other banned items may also be sold here. Police should verify such activities,” she said.

Smita Ranpise, a resident of Kumar Palmgrove society, alleged that the area has increasingly become unsafe for women during night hours. “As the neighbourhood has become a hangout zone for youngsters, including minors, vehicles are parked carelessly outside eateries and regularly create congestion on internal roads,” she said.

Majid Mir, a resident of Shobha Ivory society, also said abandoned vehicles and unauthorised parking by unidentified people pose a security risk. “Several heavy vehicles and school buses are parked on the road for days near our society, and nobody knows who they belong to. The possibility of them being used for illegal activities cannot be ruled out, so it is important that the authorities take action,” he said.

Residents also highlighted traffic congestion caused by unauthorised bakra mandis set up ahead of Bakri Eid, alleging that the temporary markets were worsening parking and traffic issues in the locality.

Noise nightmare for residents

Rohit Saxena, also a resident of Shobha Ivory, said the isolated stretch outside his society has turned into a racing spot for youths. “Racing of two- and four-wheelers on the road outside our society has become a regular occurrence. Loud noise from modified silencers adds to the disturbance late at night,” he said.

Sahil Shaikh, another resident of Kumar Palmgrove society, said loudspeaker noise from nearby schools is a problem. “Some schools in the area operate without proper permissions and use loudspeakers continuously from morning till afternoon. Residents who objected to the noise were threatened by the operators,” he alleged.

Mir also highlighted issues related to ongoing construction activity in the rapidly developing area, where several large housing projects are under construction. “Developers are not adhering to deadlines and construction activity continues till late at night. Heavy vehicles transporting construction material are active past midnight. Noise from construction work and vehicular movement disturbs residents,” he added.

Residents claimed that although police patrolling is carried out in the area, its frequency remains inadequate.

Cops struggle with manpower

Senior inspector Kumar Ghadge and traffic division senior inspector Maya Devre assured residents that corrective measures would be taken. Ghadge said police have stepped up action against establishments operating beyond permitted hours. “Earlier, patrol teams would only issue warnings, after which many cafés would reopen. Now, legal action is being taken and owners are brought to the police station if violations are found,” he said.

Police said action has already been initiated against around 23 such establishments in recent days. Ghadge said officers have now been instructed not to limit action to verbal warnings and instead register cases wherever violations are found.

He, however, admitted that increasing night patrolling remains difficult because of manpower shortages at the police station, considering its huge jurisdiction.

Taher Shaikh, an area resident, said it was important for the authorities to take timely corrective measures to prevent the situation from worsening in the locality. “This is the right time for the authorities to set things right and ensure that we do not face bigger problems in the future. Immediate corrective measures are needed to bring the general rising nuisance under control,” he said.