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‘Missing’ from duty? Chaos due to absence of traffic personnel at main chowks in Pune
As per the guidelines, a daily roster is prepared by the traffic division which is then sent to the traffic policemen on duty after which they are deployed at their respective locations
Several key roads in Pune city are currently witnessing traffic chaos on regular basis amid absence of traffic police.
A team from Hindustan Times on Wednesday visited several spots to ascertain commuters’ complaints and found that traffic police were missing at major chowks during peak hours when traffic flow was high. This was when the roster from the traffic department clearly showed the deployment of constables at these spots.
Recently, Pune police commissioner Amitabh Gupta directed traffic police to stop collecting fines from commuters at various chowks and other crowded locations across the city, so police are mainly managing traffic at the spots.
As per the guidelines, a daily roster is prepared by the traffic division which is then sent to the traffic policemen on duty after which they are deployed at their respective locations.
At Market Yard chowk at around 11.50 am, Swargate at 12.05 pm and Alka Talkies chowk at 12.20 pm, no traffic police were present when commuters were largely adhering to traffic signals. However, a few metres away, the situation was chaotic.
At Kharadi chowk at 5.30 pm and Viman Nagar at around 5.50 pm, traffic cops were found missing with chaos reported at the chowks.
Similarly, at Khanya Maruti chowk in Camp at 5.30 pm, traffic cops were found absent at the spot.
HT also visited the entire stretch of Laxmi road from 12 pm to 1 pm and found that not even a single traffic cop was present at all the chowks. Similarly, Dandekar chowk, Deep Bungalow chowk, and Khanduji Baba chowk had no traffic police between 3 pm and 5 pm.
These are all the spots where traffic police regularly remain present to man the traffic considering the heavy flow of commuters, especially during peak hours.
Residents alleged that the presence of traffic cops was imperative despite operational signals as traffic discipline was being violated with impunity by many two-wheeler riders.
Aditya Mehendale, a commuter who works as a software professional in Kharadi, said, “I have been witnessing chaos at the two chowks in Viman Nagar and Kharadi as I come from Vishrantwadi. The traffic police are nowhere to be seen and they need to be present otherwise people are openly violating the traffic rules leading to accidents and chaos.”
Manjeet Singh Virdi, a resident of Camp, said that more traffic police must be deployed on the ground to ensure that chaos is reduced, “Besides, traffic police, the commuters must self-discipline and help the police in their duties.”
A phone call at various traffic divisions during the evening elicited the response that cops were deployed in various areas but were busy clearing the manholes.
Deputy commissioner of police (traffic) Rahul Srirame said, “It is impossible to deploy policemen at all chowks as we have a staff strength of 800 for the entire city and 200 of them are on leave or sick leave and sought leave for different reasons.”
“We are doing our level best to ensure that the best of traffic service is given to the residents,” he said.
The traffic policemen are currently engaged in manning traffic signals and are not supposed to collect fines from commuters. On June 12, under fire after serious allegations of corruption and coercive penal action against commuters, joint commissioner Sandeep Karnik ordered the traffic branch to focus on disciplining traffic rather than taking penal action. Subsequently, the e-challan machines were deposited at DCP traffic headquarters.
Police inspector S Sonawane incharge of Viman Nagar and Kharadi, said, “Our men were busy removing filth from the manholes which had blocked the free flow of water as it had rained heavily in the area. They were helping the commuters stranded in deep rainwaters. Of late, the monsoon has played havoc with the lives of citizens. We work on a rotation basis and the roster is prepared daily and deployment is done accordingly. Our men had gone to help the commuters at that time.”
Prashant Inamdar, activist, said “ The presence of traffic cops at the chowks helps in reducing traffic jams and maintains traffic discipline. At the same time, it is the duty of people too to maintain traffic discipline and help the police.”
The DCP traffic said he welcomes feedback from residents and action will be taken accordingly.
“We welcome the feedback from the public and media and we can make up for what more is required from us based on the inputs of the commuters,” said Srirame.
