Srinagar: Days after Traffic Departments claim that traders in Centre Lal Chowk and its adjoining areas will not be allowed to park their vehicles outside their shops, a beeline of private vehicles were seen parked outside the shops in Srinagar on Wednesday.
The IGP Traffic JP Singh while interacting with media had said that that there will be no parking zone from Residency Road up to Ganta Ghar and Hari Singh High Street and shopkeepers of Lal Chowk will park their vehicles at SDA parking at Sheikh Bagh Srinagar.
Right from Press Enclave to Poloview, a grid lock of vehicles were seen parked outside the shops while the irony is that during VVIP movement these traders were asked to remove their vehicles and were later on allowed to occupy the road once again.
There is SDA parking inside Press Enclave Srinagar but no trader is willing to park his vehicle there. Why should I spend Rs 10 for parking my vehicle in parking zone when there is lot of space available outside my shop, a trader retorted when asked why he parks his vehicle on the road.
Very few people park their vehicles at SDA parking lot. Most of them either park their vehicles on the road or inside press colony. They do it to save parking fee, the manager of the SDA parking zone said.
A scribe who wished not to be named said that the traders and some of their salesmen have turned press enclave into parking slot. We had repeatedly requested the traffic department to initiate action against these people but nothing happened, he said adding that roadside parking in a haphazard manner gives rise to traffic mess.
The IGP Traffic during his interaction with the media had further said that that one way traffic on Residency Road would be allowed and no movement of vehicles will be allowed from Hari Singh High Street towards Lal Chowk and Lal Chowk towards Polo view.
Reports said that traffic cops deployed on the roads to man the traffic tried to implement this order on Wednesday, however, after 6pm as the traffic cops disappeared from the roads, people started to violate this rule and as usual two way traffic was seen in vogue.
When asked, why it is difficult for them to regulate the traffic in the city a traffic cop said, we always come up with an excuse that traffic depart lacks manpower. Roadside vendors are the continuous source of traffic mess here. Remove these vendors and we will show you how traffic is regulated. Our department cant remove these vendors. It is a collective responsibility of various departments and only a serious and selfless move can save this city, he said. (CNS)
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