Secunderabad: Drunkards create big mess, residents wary

Secunderabad: Residents and commuters traveling from areas of the northern part of the city are facing hardship with the mushrooming of wine shops in their areas. With liquor shops now allowed to stay open till 11 pm, several residents are worried due to this issue.

Women commuters pointed out how the closeness of these liquor shops near the bus stops and the approach roads to their houses are making them feel unsafe while traveling alone on stretches of these areas. Open plots in several areas have turned into a liquor hub.

These wine shops are also causing a nuisance for the two-wheelers and four-wheelers. There are many small liquor outlets mainly in areas like Malkajgiri, Alwal, Qutbullapur, Bowenpally and Jeedimetla where people were found consuming liquor in plastic glasses right outside the wine shops. Many people also throw these bottles on roads.

At the time when women safety is in the focus, Ramya, a techie and a resident of Jeedimetla said, "Many wine shops have mushroomed in this area. People standing there having been creating nuisance and every time I pass through this road, I feel unsafe. Many working women have started avoiding these stretches even though they are on the main road."

"Adding to this, this condition gets even worse due to improper lighting in the area. The police officials do come and give a visit but after a couple of days these people get back on roads and create nuisance during the night hours," adds Ramya.

Speaking to The Hans India, Narasimha Rao, ACP, Petbasheerabad said, "There is of course a parking issue which happens due to these wines shops. We have been conducting several drives and actions under 17b of creating nuisance in public places are regularly been taken on any such violations of the rules. We do a regular check on the issue.

However, if there are any shops still continuing with the violations then cases are booked on these shops. People can only drink in the permit room of these wine shops." However, this is not only an issue for the residents but also the commuters. Commuters traveling from these areas have to wait for 15-20 minutes to get out of the area.

S Shivani, a student of Loyola Academy and a resident in Suchitra said, "There are several times when we leave from college after 6:30 pm due to assignments or programs. In Suchitra, there are 6 wine shops in 1-2 km of Radius. People park their vehicles on the road due to which there is always traffic congestion in the area. There have been instances where people have slept on the sides of the roads which makes it difficult for us to walk."