Rising ownership of cars in Indian cities triggers fights over parking

Problem of parking more acute as big cities see exponential growth in last two decades

- Debarshi Dasgupta

Private tutor Dahlia Sen Joshi visits several houses daily in Vasant Kunj, an upscale neighbourhood in south Delhi, and relies on her trustworthy Renault Kiger, a small sport utility vehicle.

But this comes with a nagging problem - finding a space to park her car.

Vasant Kunj is mostly made up of gated compounds with multi-storey blocks of flats, but no designated space for residents to park their cars. They do so on internal roads and empty spaces - an informal "first-come-first-served" arrangement in a place where families often have more than one car.

This makes it nearly impossible for visitors such as Mrs Sen Joshi, 50, to park their cars here.

"The level of aggression of people has grown so much that if you park in their place, even for an hour, they'll scratch your car, slash your tyres or smash your windows," she told The Straits Times.

Instead, she parks outside the compounds and walks several hundred metres to her students' homes.

It is a wise call in a city that has seen a spike in parking-related fights, a worrying trend that other big Indian cities have also witnessed in recent years.

Rising private vehicle ownership, residential construction without the creation of adequate parking space and mismanagement of existing parking facilities have made parking in Indian cities a potential risk to one's life and limb.

Social media in India is replete with videos of Indians fighting over parking. In one of the most-watched clips from 2023, an elderly man wielding a stick in Delhi rains blows on another man in a parking dispute.

In March 2024, a couple in Bengaluru were assaulted by a family for parking their car in an open space opposite the family's house.