30-km barriers to seal gaps on roads

NASHIK: The city police have proposed to barricade certain spots along certain key routes to seal the gaps through which vehicles could sneak onto the roads. Vehicles will not be permitted on these routes used by pilgrims to walk till the river banks to take the holy dip during the Kumbh.
City police officials, requesting anonymity, said a proposal highlighting the need to barricade certain areas in the city has been submitted to senior authorities.The proposal also suggests closing the vehicular traffic a day prior to the days of the holy dip. The officials concerned will soon take a decision on the matter.
The city police have prepared a list of places that need to be barricaded to keep the important routes free of any vehicular and public movement during the event. The police had conducted a survey across the city to identify such points. Officials said the total length of barricading would be 30 km.
Apart from the Shahi marg, which would be used by the sadhus to reach Ramkund for the holy bath, there would be various other routes that pilgrims and locals would take to reach the river banks for the holy dip. On this backdrop, the police will be barricading certain roads.
Officials said that during the ‘Parvani’ days, when sadhus and pilgrims take the holy bath, there will be no vehicular traffic in the city. Pilgrims would come from different parts of the state and country by road and rail.
On coming by road, their vehicles will be stopped at the outer parking from where they will have to take only the state road transport bus to reach the inner parking lot on different routes and then walk till the river banks for the bath.
Thus, there would be no vehicle other than the state transport buses to ferry passengers from the outer parking till the inner parking. The Mumbai-Agra Highway will have the outer parking at Rajur Bahula and inner parking will be at the Mahamarg Stand. On the Nashik-Pune Road, the outer parking will be at Chincholi and inner parking at Sinnar Phata Market Yard.
On Dhule Road, the outer parking will be at Adgaon and inner-parking area at Nilgiri Baug and the Panchavati Stadium. On Dindori Road, the outer-parking will be at Mhasrool and inner parking at the Sharadchandra Pawar Market Yard, Panchavati.
Pilgrims coming for the holy bath from Peth Road will park their vehicles at Makhmalabad and take the ST buses from the outer parking to the inner parking at the Sharadchandra Pawar market yard in Panchavati.
Those coming from Gangapur Road will park their vehicles at the outer parking at Dugaon Phata and travel by the ST till the inner parking at Satpur.