The temple town of Alandi is once again under scrutiny for chronic traffic congestion and unregulated parking following the death of a retired CRPF personnel. Bhimaji Tukaram Chaure (59), a resident of Padmavati Road, succumbed to a cardiac arrest on Sunday afternoon after his family was unable to reach a nearby private hospital on time due to severe traffic gridlock.
Family's Desperate Struggle
Yogesh Chaure, the victim's son and an IT professional, recounted the harrowing experience. Around 1:30 pm, his father suddenly collapsed at home. The family immediately placed him in a car and rushed toward the hospital, which was merely 800 meters away. However, within a few meters on Padmavati Road, they encountered massive congestion caused by vehicles parked haphazardly on both sides outside marriage halls.
“We got stuck in a massive traffic jam. Vehicles were parked on both sides, leaving no space to move. My mother and sister pleaded with people to remove their vehicles, but nobody responded. We then shifted my father to an autorickshaw, hoping it would move faster through the traffic. However, 40 minutes had passed by the time we reached the hospital,” Yogesh told reporters.
Doctors declared Chaure dead on arrival. “The doctor said my father’s chances of survival were high had he been brought within half an hour. He died not just because of a cardiac arrest, but because of the town’s unregulated parking and traffic congestion that delayed emergency treatment,” Yogesh added.
Longstanding Traffic Woes
Residents and local activists say Alandi has been grappling with severe traffic and parking issues for years, particularly during the summer wedding season. The temple town is known for hosting mass marriages and wedding ceremonies, with hundreds of marriage halls spread across narrow lanes. Most venues lack dedicated parking spaces.
“Guests park vehicles wherever they find space — on roadsides, junctions, and even in front of residential buildings. The entire town is paralyzed during peak wedding muhurats,” said local activist Vikas Kate. He noted that over 400 marriages are conducted daily during the peak season. “Even if each wedding attracts around 500 guests, one can imagine the scale of vehicular movement. People often require over an hour to travel even one kilometer,” he added.
Residents have repeatedly complained to local authorities, demanding stricter parking regulations, dedicated parking facilities near marriage halls, and better traffic management during wedding seasons. However, no concrete measures have been implemented so far.
Authorities Respond
Chief officer of the Alandi Municipal Council, Madhav Khandekar, stated, “We have called a meeting next week with owners of all marriage halls. We will instruct them to arrange parking for guests. If they fail to do so, they should not hold any events.”
Police inspector of Dighi and Alandi traffic division, Viswanath Chavan, said they had already communicated the issue to the municipal council and urged them to make parking arrangements. “Roads are narrow and cannot accommodate the volume of increased vehicular movement. Devotees and wedding guests park vehicles haphazardly, resulting in massive traffic snarls throughout the day. On days of important marriage muhurats, congestion persists all day. It has become a trend,” Chavan added.
