Lakhs descend on roads but cops keep Kolkata moving on Shashthi

  • | Tuesday | 16th October, 2018

In south, traffic movement was restricted on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road towards Rashbehari crossing.“The crowds are swelling by the minute. This is to ensure a smooth movement of vehicular traffic. However, in doing so, the pedestrian traffic is surging exponentially at these crossings. Nearly 5,000 policemen are on the streets who are being assisted by NCC cadets, civic volunteers and even puja committee volunteers. Now, during the Pujas, we are opening all pedestrian channels all at once, completely halting the vehicular movement.

KOLKATA: The city woke up to the beats of dhaak (drums) with ‘Bodhan’ on Monday, heralding the start of five-day festivities. By evening, lakhs hit the streets to make up for the weather-dampened spirits over the last few days. The crowd count on Monday surpassed Sunday’s record-high, stretching police to the brink.From north to south, traffic moved slowly and by evening, office-goers added to the usual evening surge of puja revellers. The result was expected. In quick succession, Bidhan Sarani towards Hatibagan was closed to traffic from Shyambazar five-point crossing and MG Road towards College Street had to be closed from Sealdah flyover. In south, traffic movement was restricted on Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Road towards Rashbehari crossing.“The crowds are swelling by the minute. It is more than what we saw on Sunday, even though it was a weekend. People are standing in the queue for nearly an hourand-a-half to get a glimpse of the idol but none is complaining. Police have been doing an enormous job since Chaturthi ,” said Hiranmoy Chatterjee, president of the Deshapriya Park Durga Puja committee.Deshapriya Park pandal was on the must-see list of techie Souvik Basu. “After work, I visited Ekdalia and Hindustan Park Pujas with my colleagues. We plan to wrap it up seeing Suruchi Sangha and then calling it a day. The traffic has been smooth, thanks to cops.” Antara Das, a banker, too, praised Kolkata Police. “The traffic is quite smooth. At this pace, we will make good use of the time,” she said.A senior traffic officer explained, “We are following the ‘10 minutes for vehicular movement and two minutes for pedestrian crossover’ rule. The Puja crowd is being channelized through barricades to prevent any spillover on arterial roads. This is to ensure a smooth movement of vehicular traffic. However, in doing so, the pedestrian traffic is surging exponentially at these crossings. On any given day, we allow pedestrian crossover at important crossings only at specific points at any given point of time. Now, during the Pujas, we are opening all pedestrian channels all at once, completely halting the vehicular movement. This is to ease pressure on the pedestrian channels.”With autos off the roads, police have stopped roadside parking, some even in the fee parking zones, allowing a smooth vehicular flow. The buses are only being allowed to stop at designated places. The revellers are then put in pedestrian channels, which lead up to the pandals and then again to the designated exits. None of these are on the main roads. All small intersections and alleys are being manned to keep them de-clogged. Nearly 5,000 policemen are on the streets who are being assisted by NCC cadets, civic volunteers and even puja committee volunteers.

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