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In defence of the traffic police!!

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Written By vmenon - 14 May, 2008

Traffic Bangalore Police environment

In the "unlocking bangalore" debate I come from 2 or 3 contexts.

a) I believe there is at least 30% capacity on our roads which are wasted by non adherence and non implementation of the law( both traffic laws and a myriad of civic laws )

b) I believe that of the various enforcers/government bodies out there ,the traffic police is one of the better ones , but who are are always at the worst end of the stick, tremendously underresourced and unempowered.

Note: on the empowerment side..the traffic police have a very small area of power.The enforcement wings of the RTO and BBMP have jurisdiction of many more issues that effect traffic much more.

c)However in the long run it is the traffic ploice who are accountable..for th traffic mess ..the usual case of responsibility without resources or authority.

d)That until this fundamental issue is resolved all our public ( or private )investments of the past and future will deliver only a fraction of the expected outcome.

The effort should therefore be

i)To resource traffic department.

Note:Some level of private funding is going on , but for the problems that we face , still small.

b)enactment of laws that empower the traffic police...

eg building violations/encroachments, even badly maintained roads!!

 

This is asking for a lot I l know..but I truly believe the solution lies first here and not in an 3500crore expressway or whatever.

I do know that there are are many areas within the purview of the existing jurisdiction of the traffic police that are not being enforced sufficiently ...but I believe that will happen in conjunction with some of the other changes listed above , not before.

And on huge 3500crore investments in traffic related infrastructure..i am of the form opinion that a lion share of that should go in for pedestrian and cycle accesses .

And of course thee removal of the state monopoly on public transport..but thats another but very very crucial link..to this unlocking debate.

 

vijayan

COMMENTS

awesome

tsubba - 14 May, 2008 - 12:31

menon sir, right on the ball. another issue is even though they are to sit on certain decisions of traffic management and have to bear a significant load in enforcement, they have no cadre of trained traffic engineers in their ranks. the chief was quoted as saying empirical knowledge and things learnt on the job is more than sufficient. consequently, they are often seen pushing for grade separators and flyovers all over the place. there are a few engineers in the palike's traffic cell, but it is not clear if they co-ordinate with the police or take any inputs from them.

Couldn't agree more

silkboard - 14 May, 2008 - 13:35

Couldn't agree more. Investments in law and order is a lower hanging fruit - cost wise for sure, and probably policy-change wise as well.

Its very rare to find people who think that way - defending traffic police a bit. They need investments commensurate with city's growth (just like we need more money for roads, flyovers and what not), period.

  • short staffed
  • short on equipment
  • short on egovernance initiatives
  • short on "public perception" - a lot of which is because we dont know whats in and out of their jurisdiction.

Can we get some stats on Bangalore Police -

  • Staff strength 5 years ago vs today
  • Relationship (monetary and jurisdiction wise) with BBMP, BDA etc
  • Pay levels compared to similar level BBMP, BDA staff
  • Investment in egovernance initiatives to make their job easier.

cameras

narayan82 - 14 May, 2008 - 14:30

More fool proof methods must be setup, to catch violaters. Let Camera's be more frequent, and let the images be viewable to all (RTI). Finally the cops need some kind of motivation, either cash or rewards or something! The job of a traffic policeman I think is one of the worst jobs - w.r.t health. I am not sure how the healtcare policy is, But i sure think they deserve a good one.

Traffic Police - Bang On !

Naveen - 14 May, 2008 - 14:53

 

Mr.Menon - I too agree wholly with all your observations.

They (traffic police) really are trying to manage a 'jungle' of a city overrun by wild 'vehicles' who will stop at nothing. Managing 'real' forests may be much more easier for forest officials in the wilderness. All they get are brickbats & criticism by the media & all & sundry for not being 'effective'.

Narayan - I was told by the security at the hospital that the camera installed on airport road (manipal hospital jn) was broken by miscreants, & has since not been replaced.

 

traffic marshals

murali772 - 15 May, 2008 - 10:24

Would like to believe that my 'traffic marshals' idea (enunciated earlier - click on link below) could help greatly - wonder if we could pursue it.

Muralidhar Rao

http://bangalore.praja.in/blog/silkboard/2007/12/18/how-do-you-react#comment-1322

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