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It’s virtually police Vs traffic in Bhagalpur and common people became sandwiches between the worst traffic problem and virtually defunct administration!

Recent experiment by  Bhagalpur police has order for the closer of movements of heavy vehicles on NH-80 from Kahalgaon to Naugachia via Vikramshila bridge across river Ganga here during day time, has failed. The directive came to effective from December 12 last after inspector general of police(IG), Bhagalpur range, who was on way to Naugachia to attain a meeting was trapped on the bridge  over 3 hours on yesterday mainly due to jam.

Roads in —in utter helpless condition !

Sushil ManSingh Khopde, IG, Bhagalpur’s vehicle was in the snarl of trucks on the bridge over more than 3 hours on that day. Pranotosh Kumar Das, in-charge SP, Bhagalpur however rushed on the bridge for rescue of his boss, after hour-long struggle managed to take out the IG from the jam. Interestingly, DIG, Bhagalpur zone, Vikash Vaibhav who was also scheduled to visit Kahalgaon, had to postpone his visit due to the jam.

Top cops however blamed the infrastructure bottleneck as the main hurdle for the traffic problem. “Look a busy highway like NH-80 is passing from Bhagalpur but there is no bypass like other cities here,” a top ranking cop pointed out the basic cause of this problem. While concerned administrative officials has been claiming for completing of the bypass here within short time. But due to the problems of land acquisition with the land holders whose lands were acquired earlier, the bypass has delayed.

“I am coming from Kolkata and would go to Arunachal Pradesh, I yet not find any problem but since I entered Bhagalpur, I have been trapped in the jam for the last three days. All the fishes inside the truck would be rotten if my truck would have to stay here next 2-3 days further,” pointed out Ashok Mondal, a truck driver.

“When the top cops have to face such situations, just imagine what common people have to suffer her for over more than 2-3 years,” said Ranjan Choudhary, a private pull car operator for school children here. The traffic problem has now become a major challenge for Bhagalpur district administration, admitted district magistrate, Pranav Kumar. But he hoped that after completing the bypass road, to some extent the problem would be reduced. “Another bridge across river Ganga parallel to Vikramshila bridge which is under pipeline would another relief for people of Bhagalpur,” Kumar added.

Das said Bhagalpur has to face heavy traffic flows as Farakka bridge across river Ganga at Malda district in Bengal (some 161 km east of Bhagalpur) has been closed for maintenance works, all the traffic from Jharkhand and Bengal has been diverted to Bhagalpur to cross the river Ganga.

Das who concentrated on traffic system here, asked his subordinates not to allow the trucks to park in two lines on the NH-80 during no entry time. But due to police promptness in following Das’s directives, Naugachiaand even up to Kurshela bridge on NH-31 witnessed snarl of trucks on both side of the highway resulting massive traffic chaos. Bhagalpur city areas too suffers due to block of traffic on Vikramshila bridge.

Road jam—a common phenomena…!

“Early in 2016-2017 we had to miss our classes regularly as we never reached school in time when our school bus used to trapped in the jam. Same situation once returned back here,” said Shambhavi, a student of senior section of Mount Assisi school here which is located at Rani Talab, besides NH-80.

Bhagalpur gradually lost all its charms and business activists remedied dull here due to the jam, is the common perception. “What police could do except removing the jam but why not the government is serious about foolproof  basic infrastructural facilities at places like Bhagalpur,” said a junior ranking cop on condition of anonymity. Many people here said that not a single political party for the last 10-15 years never bothered to put such issues like traffic problem, lack of basic infrastructural facilities in its poll agendas.