Today as I was travelling between offices of real estate developers and police stations to gather information for my news reports, I chanced to come across a dangerously drooping height barrier at Noida Sector 27.
In the vicinity of Sab Mall at Atta Peer Chowk, this height barrier had been installed by the Noida Authority to prevent tall (often loaded) commercial vehicles from entering the market area. I could see commuters of three wheelers cringe and lower their heads while passing under it. "It can collapse anytime," a man on a motorcycle said nervously to a rickshaw puller at the side of the road.
After hearing this comment and casting another long look at the rickety structure, I decided to talk to a few other commuters and passer-bys. All of them said that the structure was weakening rapidly and can break and fall over vehicles or even people passing underneath. " It will cost lives," a man shuddered.
The commuters that I spoke to also said that given the current condition of the height barrier, vehicles with relatively taller roofs can hardly scrape through. "Chances of mishaps are multiplying by the day, as even light collisions with vehicle roofs can bring the barrier down," a pedestrian remarked.
By now I had decided that I would write about the impending danger of this height barrier and the callousness of the traffic police and civic authorities. I resolutely walked towards, Layak Singh, the traffic inspector (in charge of the area) and questioned him about the situation. “We are going to immediately inform Noida Authority to repair the barrier,” was his knee-jerk reaction.
I somehow could not trust Singh's discretion in the matter. After all why had he not alerted the authorities until now? I approached SC Mishra, senior project engineer of Noida Authority and apprised him about the half-collapsed height barrier. Mishra acknowledged the seriousness of the situation and thanked me (City Spidey) profusely for bringing it to his notice. He assured me that he would immediately send his team to repair it.
Thereafter I promptly reached office and filed a report on the half-collapsed height barrier. Barely, an hour after the news was published on our site I received a heartening news. True to his word, Mishra had sent his team to the spot for repair works. They started work at 4.30 pm and by 8 pm all the joints of the barrier had been repaired and the height too was increased.
