CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has declared the Madley Road subway area a no-hawking and no-parking zone, and ruled that except the 131 corporation shops bordering the railway station, all other platform vendors should vacate the area "forthwith."

Passing orders on a public interest litigation petition filed by Madley Road Civic Exnora honorary secretary M.M. Abdul Khader, the First Bench also directed the police and Corporation authorities to erect overhead iron bars at the entrance of Madley Road and Natesan Road to prevent entry of heavy vehicles.

As for the complaint of unauthorised parking in the U-turn region above the subway, the Bench of Chief Justice A.P. Shah and Justice K. Chandru said the entire area should be kept free of any vehicle. The judges ordered the posting of two policemen on both sides of the subway, and said besides an existing inspector of police, a sub-inspector should patrol the area regularly to ensure that the movement of vehicles was not curtailed.

Permitting wholesale vegetable vendors to be impleaded as parties to the proceedings, the Bench said the petitioner's prayer to shift the wholesale vegetable market would be decided after hearing both sides. They then adjourned the matter after two weeks. The petitioner has sought a direction to the authorities to maintain the service roads on both sides of the subway and the U-turn on the T. Nagar side as "no-vending, no-parking and tow area" to ensure free flow of pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

Heavy traffic flow

He said the subway witnessed a heavy traffic flow daily as it connected T. Nagar and West Mambalam with Ashok Nagar. The area is encroached upon by vegetable merchants, who parked heavy motor vehicles and commercial vehicles on service roads.

He also sought a ban on the functioning of the wholesale perishable market as per the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Specified Commodities Markets (Regulation of Location) Act, 1996.

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