Punjab and Haryana high court seeks fresh traffic management plan for court premises

During the hearing, the court also directed Survey of India to conduct physical demarcation by experts to ascertain how much area of HC overlaps the Sukhna catchment area, in case there is overlapping

The Punjab and Haryana high court (HC) has directed Chandigarh administration to prepare a fresh traffic management plan for the high court premises.

In view of the security aspect, the bench also directed the registrar general to ensure that the litigants are allowed to enter the premises only from gate number 3. (HT file photo)

The HC bench of chief justice Sheel Nagu and justice Anil Kshetarpal said that an officer of the rank not less than Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Traffic, who has expertise in traffic planning be tasked with the preparation of traffic management plan. The traffic experts are free to suggest ways and means, including widening of roads, removing/restricting dividers or proposing new and additional routes for entry and exit, it said.

The court was hearing a plea by the Punjab and Haryana High Court Employees Association secretary Vinod Dhatterwal, seeking implementation of the holistic development plan, which envisages setting up of multi-storey buildings to cater to the requirement of additional space. The infrastructure to cater to high footfall on the premises has not kept its pace, the plea said, demanding intervention from the HC on judicial side.

During the hearing, one of the suggestions made was that of making the entry and exit to the premises one-way. However, court was of the view that looking at the volume of four wheelers and two-wheelers, which is alleged to be around 3,000, specially during the period between 9:30 am to 11 am and 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm, the proposal of a single-entry road “may not be viable”.

During the hearing, the court also directed Survey of India to conduct physical demarcation by experts to ascertain how much area of HC overlaps the Sukhna catchment area, in case there is overlapping.

Litigants’ entry from Gate number 3 only

In view of the security aspect, the bench also directed the registrar general to ensure that the litigants are allowed to enter the premises only from gate number 3. As a necessary consequence entry of litigants from gate number 1, 2, 4 and 5, is henceforth prohibited from August 29, it said.