Panchkula civic group Solution Box has launched a campaign to reclaim the city's crumbling and encroached footpaths following a landmark Supreme Court ruling that established walking as a fundamental right. The citizen-led initiative aims to mobilise resident welfare associations (RWAs) and report safety violations to local departments, highlighting how poor infrastructure forces pedestrians onto dangerous roads.
Supreme Court Declares Right to Walk a Fundamental Right
The Supreme Court on Friday ruled that the right to walk is a fundamental right under Part III of the Constitution, linking it to the right to life and free movement. The judgment was triggered by the tragic on-road death of a five-year-old boy walking to school. The court urged the Centre to enact a law mandating well-demarcated pedestrian pathways nationwide.
Ground Reality in Panchkula: Broken and Encroached Footpaths
A ground reality check across Panchkula reveals missing walkways, broken pavement tiles, garbage dumping, and overgrown grass. In Sectors 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11, commercial encroachments, makeshift shelters, parked vehicles, and private hedges make pedestrian pathways unusable. This particularly impacts senior citizens, children, and persons with disabilities.
Specific danger zones include broken footpaths outside the Government College for Girls in Sector 14, forcing hundreds of students into moving traffic daily. Opposite Little Flower School in the same sector, an illegal garbage dump blocks the entire walking zone. Footpaths are entirely missing on the dividing road of Sectors 15 and 16, while the Mansa Devi Complex and trans-Ghaggar sectors face major clearance issues.
Jurisdictional Confusion Among Authorities
Jurisdiction over footpaths is split among three state entities: the municipal corporation (MC), Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP), and the Panchkula Metropolitan Development Authority (PMDA). Residents allege pedestrian safety remains a low priority for all three bodies.
Civic Group Demands Action
Mohit Gupta, founder of Solution Box, lamented administrative apathy, stating: “All these issues force pedestrians to walk on the roads alongside vehicles. All issues need to be attended to so that footpaths of the city really become walkable and safe. It is not just a road accident risk, but it also discourages walking. The city authorities must wake up and identify the problem areas and make walkable footpaths for residents.”
