Professional bouncers to keep ITO skywalk free of lovebirds

It is five in the evening and six well-built men dressed in black are keeping a sharp eye on everyone — especially the couples — on the newly opened ‘skywalk’ near ITO. These men are bouncers whose primary job, they say, is to make sure that the elevated walkway does not become a lovers’ hangout zone.

“Since morning, I have had to ask at least 100 couples to move elsewhere,” says Ravinder , who, like his other colleagues, prefers to tell only his first name. As we talk, he spots a couple holding hands, leaning over the railing, and immediately rushes towards them. He has a word with the young couple, which does not question him and decides to leave. “We have been hired because no one listens to the guards these days. Throughout the day, I have been preventing a couple from sitting on the stairs of the plazas of the skywalk. What they need to understand is that this place is built for pedestrians, and not for a date,” says Amit , another bouncer on duty. So, do the couples not ask who they are? “That they understand from our dress; they also understand we mean business,” says Rocky, another bouncer. The canopied skywalk, whose three arms lead to different exit points, provides expansive views of the area. Besides, six bouncers, there are 15 guards at any given time. The facility also has 40 CCTV cameras. These bouncers, who are on duty on the skywalk from 8am to 8pm, have been hired by the company in charge of its maintenance and get a monthly salary of ~15,500. “Our company is responsible for the maintenance of skywalk. We have hired bouncers to ensure there are no thefts and no one restricts the smooth flow of pedestrians,” said Bansi Lal, an electrical engineer with Swadeshi Civil Infrastructure, the company which built the skywalk.

We have no problem (with couples on the skywalk) as long as they do not get touchyfeely and keep moving

AMIT, bouncer