It is not only the illiterate and rural drivers who are the culprits, the urban literates are equally responsible for the traffic circus in Pimpri-Chinchwad. ``It does not bother me that my vehicle parked on the road causes inconveniences to others,'' says a D.Y. Patil College student brazenly. ``We don't have parking space within the college premises so we park outside.''

``The other benefit of parking outside is that we can easily bunk classes and speed away,'' says another student. `Speed away' is right! ``Most of the guys race like crazy on this road to impress the girls in the hostel,'' says Rajesh Naik, who has his kiosk on the road which leads to Yashwant Rao Chavan Memorial Hospital from D.Y. Patil College. ``A lot of minor accidents and skirmishes occur on these roads. The residents of the area had submitted a memoranda to the college. The college authorities in turn had asked the corporation to construct a speed-breaker on this road, but no action has been forthcoming.''

Parked two-wheelers on both sides of the road squeezes the already narrow carriage-width of the road. ``The situation worsens when the road is flocked with primary and secondary school students who come and go back from the school at 12 noon and 3.30 p.m. The young students are vulnerable to the rash driving practices of the older college students,'' says Naik.

``We are not aware that our vehicles pose any problems,'' says a group of students lounging on the seats of the parked two wheelers.

``The vehicles are parked on both sides of the road from 7.30 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. and we find it difficult to ply on these roads,'' says Govind Gangal, rickshaw driver. ``Moreover the students do not park their vehicles in a systematic manner,'' he complains. Has he ever tried confronting them? ``Who wants to get into trouble with rich brats?,'' he questions.

``I am not aware that students park their vehicles on the roads. There is parking provision within the hostel premises and the students should rightly be parking their vehicles there,'' says S.G. Tillu, principal, D.Y. Patil College of Engineering. ``You have to make concession for the admission period,'' he continues, ``during the admission months a lot of students, parents, guardians come to the college and it is possible that they park their vehicles outside.''

``Except for the two months of holidays, the cavalcade of parked vehicles is a common sight,'' says Naik.

``There is parking space inside the college premises but it is only for the staff,'' says a student. His words bear weight. Within the college parking lot the only vehicles visible are the four wheelers.

``It is the college's duty to provide parking space for the vehicles of their staff and students,'' says S.D. Garade, City Engineer.

Will the corporation take any corrective measures? ``It is the responsibility of the traffic police to look into such encroachments,'' says Garade. What about the boards which specify a fine of Rs.1000 on non-parking zones ? ``They are only threatening measures, not to be actually implemented,'' he says.

P.I. Mohite, Senior Police Inspector, Traffic branch, Pimpri says,``We face a shortage of staff. It is difficult for us to monitor each and every transgression daily. Moreover, it is the duty of citizens to abide by the rules.''

``I will look into the matter of problematic parking by the students, I will study the issue,'' assures Tillu.