High Court Push Spurs Crackdown on Cellar Misuse in Visakhapatnam

A long-standing civic issue in Visakhapatnam has finally gained momentum after a recent High Court ruling barred commercial activity in designated parking areas, offering residents renewed hope of action against widespread cellar encroachments.

Over the years, basement and stilt spaces meant for parking have been steadily converted into commercial units across the city. The Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation is now grappling with the fallout: shrinking parking availability, vehicles spilling onto main roads and rising traffic congestion.

Urban planners warn that the issue goes beyond mobility. Cellars functioning as commercial hubs pose risks ranging from electrical short circuits and generator explosions to flooding hazards during heavy rains, which the region experiences often.

With an estimated 30,000 commercial establishments in the city, residents allege that lax planning oversight and weak enforcement allowed violations to proliferate. Many building owners have turned cellar areas into high-rent commercial spaces, despite clear restrictions in building norms.

The High Court’s intervention followed GVMC demolition notices served on a stilt-floor commercial unit in East Point Colony. Though the owners challenged the notices, the court made it unequivocally clear that parking spaces cannot be commercialised and that unauthorised structures in cellars and stilt floors will not be regularised.

Yet, thousands of establishments continue to operate from these spaces, including clinics, bars and service outlets. Resident welfare associations argue that customers parking on already crowded streets are worsening traffic pressures.

Civic groups are pressing GVMC, traffic authorities and the police to launch a coordinated enforcement drive. They want violations cleared first in high-density corridors and major intersections to restore parking space, reduce congestion and improve public safety.

As Visakhapatnam positions itself as a fast-growing urban centre, residents say addressing cellar misuse is critical not just for mobility, but for safeguarding lives and rebuilding faith in civic administration.