Attention readers !!!

Keeping in view the overwhelming response that we have received for the Sunday Magazine. We are starting a new interactive partnership with our patrons.
As you are our most precious resource, we would like to solicit your response to various issues that need to be highlighted. An issue shall be presented before you on weekly basis inviting gracious comments from your end. The views would be published under the column

‘It’s your take !

Attention Readers
We hereby put before you another burning problem that faces the people:

scarcity of water

With the fast expansion of the city there is always more problem about the availability of drinking water in the city. New colonies have come up in the vicinity of the city. These colonies are facing perennial shortage of drinking water. In some areas water is supplied only once or twice a week. In many areas large quantitites of water is wasted through leaking pipes.
Water being a basic necessity, it is highly important that water is supplied to the citizens on a regular basis.
Kindly send us your views about the scarcity of water and steps that you deem are necessary to be taken to tide over the water scarcity in the city and its suburbs are solicited.
Readers should send their views to:
It’s Your Take
Daily Excelsior C/o Daily Excelsior House, Janipura, Jammu.A response from you will better equip us to highlight the various problems and incidents occurring in the society.

email: take@dailyexcelsior.com

scarcity of water

Water is a basic necessity of the people. Jammu city and its suburbs have a long and chronic problem of water shortage. People are everywhere dissatisfied with the state of things especially with such a basic issue as relating to drinking water. The population of the city is expanding fast so are the boundaries of the city.
People of the city are faced with water crisis. Despite promises to upgrade and streamline water situation in the city people are not satisfied with the plans that Government chalks out for them. In this regard we had elicited views from the public about the problem of water scarcity in the city. We, hereby share with our readers their views.
Water is a basic necessity. So it should be supplied regularily and on sustained basis. These views are expressed by Pooja Gupta of Akhnoor a house wife. She is scared of the simple idea that water supply has to be given for half an hour and that too under low pressure.
Rashmi Chadha of Gandhi Nagar who is a working women expects that the PHE authorities should streamline water distribution. According to her water should be supplied either between 6 to 9 am in the morning of after 5 pm in the evening. Because water that is supplied during the day means that nuclear families or in such families where old people cannot collect water will have to face hardships.
Mohan Lal, of Trikuta Nagar a businessman is highly critical of the fact that there are hundreds of leaking pipes in the city. Precious water is wasted through them while as people suffer for want of water. He expresses the hope that water leakage will be stopped so that more water is made available to the people.
Many years ago the Government had laid a blue print for the complete solution of the water crisis in the city and its adjoining areas. Water from Chenab was to be cleaned and supplied to consumers which would help a great deal to control water scarcity in the city. But nothing is being done in this regard rues PL Khajuria.
Jammu city is expanding at faster rate than anticipated. With a huge population to cater to Sitlee water pumping station will not be enough. We need to have a long term solution to counter this problem. Tube wells should be dug in such areas where water scarcity is a problem. This will be more cost effective in terms of less bigger pipes needed to transport water from a distance says Ashok Jamwal, a social activist.
There are many areas in the city where water is supplied only once a week. Areas like Bantalab, Roop Nagar and Durga Nagar etc are suffering because only once in a week water is supplied to them. People in these areas suffer like a fish without water. Government should take steps so that at least from this summer people suffer less on account of water shortage expects M N Wali of Roop Nagar.
We need to upgrade water infrastruction in the city. Old pipes need to be replaced. People who are having two or more connections mostly illegal should be fined a hefty sum. Those employees who are entrusted to release water do it at their sweet will. water release schedule should be formulated and published on the print media. The authorities in PHE must stick to a water schedule religiously expects Santosh Anand, an employee living in Kacchi Chawni.
Sohan Singh of Digiana has touched an important point. He is not satisfied with the quality of drinking water supplied. According to him drinking water should be checked whether it is worth drinking or not. There should be an independent body to check the quality of drinking water. Leaking pipes draw in muddy water which should be plugged in so that the water we drink is safe. According to him regular water supply is important but the quality of water that is supplied by PHE is also important.
The water shortage is not confined to city only. It is a well known fact that in rural areas women have to fetch water from great distances. In Samba and its vicinity e.g in Badwana, Sodum, Babeti, Khabal, Sambu and Suran, women have no access to portable drinking water. They have to fetch water from seasonal Nallahs which carry water unfit for human consumption says Roshan Lal of Samba.
It has been seen that frequent water cuts affects water supply. Efforts have to be made so that uninterrupted power supply is ensured to pump stations drinking water under ground opines Subash Malhotra.
Akshey Kumar of link road emphasises that water infrastructive needs a revamp. There are old pumps which draw water from the wells. They waste lot of energy and are less efficient. While as bore wells are dug their is no emphasises on water harvest technology. Large pools or tanks should be constructed where rain water can be harvested which will help recharge water table.‘‘ Places where water supply is irregular we need to press into service water tankers on a regular basis and according to a time table that is suitable to people. Otherwise water tankers arrive and many working women or employees cannot collect water’’ says, Mohini Sharma a school teacher living in Greater Kailash.
Joginder Kumar Angotra, a social worker has an important point to make. According to him inadequate water supply and leaking pipes are not the main reason for the shortage of water. People too are responsible for it. People injudiciously use water and waste a lot of pricious water. He opines that a proper and judicious use of water by the people can help to tide over the water shortage in the city.
New Colonies specifically face chronic water shortage. Efforts should be made so that the parched areas of Sainik Colony, Channi, Greater Kailash etc are supplied with assured drinking water expects Sunil Vaid, a resident of Sainik Colony

Upgrading Public Transport

A fortnight ago we had presented before our readers the problem of public transport in the city. The citizens have shared their opinion about the status of public transport. As the city has expanded beyond imagination the problems of people have increased due to poor status of public transport. In this regard. It will be of interest to share with you the opinion and aspiration of the citizens about the public transport in the city.
Rajan Sharma of Greater Kailash is not satisfied with the availability of public transport for places like Greater Kailash. According to him, Greater Kailash inhabits about twenty five thousand people but for such a large area there is no dedicated public transport available. Matadors do not ply nor do any buses. The transport authorities should soon do something in this matter, he avers.
Sunita Mahajan a house wife is highly critical of the autorikshaws in the city. She raises a pertinent question that why the autorickshaws do not charge as per meter. ‘‘Why are the meters dead ? The administration,’’ she opines, ‘‘is silent on the issue’’. She expresses her dissatisfaction with the autorikshaws. ‘‘They not only charge a hefty rate but bully passengers. They should be more polite to passengers,’’ she hopes.
Rajeshwar Gupta also express same sentiments. According to him Autorikshaws take the passenger for a ride. They charge more and agree to move only as per their sweet will. He wants to have dedicated autostand space alloted in every locality. He also hopes that late night Autorickshaws are a must. He hopes that the authorities will introduce night service autos in the city.
Mohinder Pal Singh of Gole Gujral is critical of the lack of regular connectivity with the city Centre. He is dissatisfied the metadors plying on the Gole Gujral Jewel route. The matadors are jampacked with passenger. The owners do not ply all the vehicles. It is only as and when they wish. The result is that thousands of people are put to trouble. ‘‘The Govt should do something so that students, working ladies and other passengers are spared the hardships, he hopes.
Satish Mehra wants that old metadors should be discarded. He is of the opinion that better matadors with atleast a minimum beg room be introduced.
‘‘Why the Govt is not giving attention to dedicated stops for matadors areas’’ says Bunty Singh, a student. Wherever matadors ply they stop wherever and whenever they like. This increases the time span of journey which results in ordinate delays, he emphasises.
Sunita Mahajan also expresses same views. ‘‘ Eve teasing in Matadors is on the rise. Govt should stop overtaking in the matadors’’ she days.
Paras Ram mulls over the blaring music played in the Matadors. The high pitched music is a source of great discompfort to passengers. Sometimes obscene songs are played. This becomes intolerable when women and girls are in the Matadors, he avers. Why the authorities are not taking permanent steps to stop the use of music in matadors.
Many old vehicles ply in the road. They are not only uncomfortable but creaky. They cause a lot of pollution. Transport authorities should stop these vehicles, hopes G L Dogra.
Rashi Parihar wants that for women and girl students the Govt should about operating ladies matadors in trial basis, because the rush on matadors is so much that women and girls find themselves unsafe in them.
Ram Parkash is of the opinion that the conductions of matadors are of very young age. ‘‘They do not have manners to speak politely or decently. The authorities should take steps to ensure that these young conductors are at first discouraged from doing the job of conductors. Otherwise they need to be groomed so that they behave properly, he says. He is of the opinor that conductors and drivers should be asked to wear uniform.
Raj Mohan has an interesting point to make. According to him if there are regular meetings with citizens, transport authorities and matadors operators then the problems can be solved among themselves. This could result in a better interaction between the traffic operators and matador users.
‘‘Overloading and overcharging is one of the endemic problems facing the city public transport. It is highly important to stop overcharging and over loading by Matadors. Autorickshaws too indulge in overcharging’’, says Pinky Khajuria. She hopes that the authorities will do something concrete to stop overloading in the matadors. According to her overcroweded matadors have become dens for eveteasers.
Suggestions
* Connect new colonies.
* Make dedicated stops for Matadors.
* Convene regular meetings with Public and Matador owners.
* Stop plying old vehicles.
* Make Public Transport more women friendly.
* Introduce Night Autorickshaw service.
* Start ladies only matadors.
* Impose hefty fines on blaring music in Matadors.
* Enforce charging through meters for Autorickshaws.

Power Shortage

A fortnight earlier we had requested our readers to air their views about the overall power situation in the State. We have received an overwhelming response from our readers. This time the response has come from a very wide spectrum of the civil society. The response suggests that the people are not happy with the overall power scenario of the State. Consumer crave for the days when they will get uninterrupted power supply for which they are more than willing to pay.
Rajeshwar Singh , a university student is highly critical of the faulty system of planning in power sector. According to him the Government is not serious about planning for future demands. It has failed to come upto the expectation of the people on the power front. Every year it promises better power supply but never delivers on the promise. First of all it should revamp the whole power infrastructure which is obselete, he opines.
Monika Gupta of Trikuta Nagar is more forthright on the issue. She is of the opinion that there should be a complete stop to the power theft. She is of the opinion that the PDD authorities are not active on this front. She says that if power theft is stopped we would save power which can be utilised by reducing power cuts. For this the authorities will have to intensify surprise checks and raids.
Chaman Lal of Samba has emphasised the need to instal e-meters in a big by. According to him the PDD Department should intensify the drive to instal e-meters everywhere. ‘‘This will save power as well as generate large amounts of revenue,’’ he says. According to him the Govt is not doing as expected in this regard.
Hardeep Singh of Digiana has welcomed the decision of the PDD to instal e-meters. According to him the tarrif for high end users is on the higher side. He also is not satisfied with the quality of e-meters. According to him some meters show reading slowly while as some run fast.
Kulwant Kaur , a housewife from Airport road is highly critical about the power cuts. She thinks that the Govt is not honest on power supply schedule. In addition to power cuts as notifed, there are unscheduled power cuts. ‘‘We see the ‘Darshan’ of electricity only for few hours. Our children who study suffer due to these cuts, she rues .
S L Bhat, a teacher is dissatisfied with the quality of electric transformers. According to him hundreds of transformers are old. They are unable to bear normal loads. They cause a lot a noise and then burn out. Maintenance of transformers is not done. These transformers are dangerously installed without the customary wiring and protection. Anybody can get electrocuted because many of them are at low level or their wires and fuses are loose and without insulation, he opines.
S. Dolma, a housewife is concerned with the fluctuation in the village. Apart from the usual power cuts and other problems concerned with the power supply there are unpredictable fluctuations which cause damage to the electronic equipments and wirings. A steady voltage has to be maintianed by the authorities, she expects.
Asgar Ali, is critical of the power cuts. Despite promises power cuts occur. The authorities without any conscience seem to have developed a habit of only advertising power cuts over print media without caring to think that the poor consumers are already under power cuts he rues. The PDD authorities should undertake a proper planning so that power position is agumented, he emphasises.
Rajinder Chib of Miran Sahib is critical about the lack of vision on the part of PDD authorities. According to him the Govt knows well that the power demand is on the increase. Why does not the Govt start a fast track thermal power plant say of 600-900 MWS between Jammu and Kathua so that the power demand is reduced, he avers.
Amit Khajuria is concerned about the faulty and umprofessional maintenane of the inventory of PDD. The distribution lines are always a hazard. They are only in few cases separated by seprators. Otherwise in high wind of rainy season they touch each other causing abrupt power failure. A better and modern installation of distribution wires having seperators in between is a neglected area which the PDD authorities must attend to.
Kuldeep Abrol, of Gandhi Nagar says, ‘‘The PDD authorities should make billing system computerised and modern. Bills should come the way phone bills come .
Sandeep Mehra of Gandhi Nagar is full of anguish at the incessent power cuts happening in addition to the advertised schedule :
A highly concerned C L Mahajan of Katra is surprised that power cuts occur even such places at Katra and Bhawan area.
Power theft of power bypassing e-meters is continuing unabated rues Rishmi Pargal, a house wife. We are paying the bills regularily while as many people bypass e-meters and draw power illegally through hooking,’’ she complains.
These places should be supplied with continues power supply because a power cut at Bhawan mean negative publicity of our State.
Babulal of Bari Brahmana is worried about the power cuts in the industrial areas of the State such a Bari Brahmana, Gangyal, Samba etc.
How can we attract industries when the already established industries are subject to heavy power cuts. No wonder why people are beelining for Himachal Pradesh to instal industrial units when Power supply is guaranted) he emphasis.

Upgrading tourist spots

A fortnight ago we had presented an issue of public importance. The issue was Maintaining Tourist Spots in the State. As expected we have received a nmber of suggestions in this regard. Here we are sharing the public response with you. The publication of public opinion about this particular issue assumes significance because our State is considered a hot spot for tourism. As many people are directly or indirectly involved in tourism; it is the collective responsibility of concerned authorities to heed the views and opinions of the people in this matter.
Nirmal Soni a regular visitor to Bagh-e-bahu is not pleased with the maintenance and upkeep of the Garden. According to her this garden is one of the very few spots that a Jammuite can visit quite easily. But she rues that the fountains in this garden do not play regularily. Even water does not run in the channels. ‘‘Sometimes it seems as if the garden is dry,’’ she adds. Being the main garden in the city there is need to maintain the garden well. Similar views were expressed by Sandeep Jain,a businessman.
Kulbushan Sharma has pointed towards another spot that demands attention. According to him Jajjar Kotli. Can become a much travelled tourist spot but there is complete apathy of the Government towards this beautiful spot of Jajjar Kotli. He says, ‘‘ People flock this place in summer but when they reach here they repent their decision’’. Lawns in Jajjar Kotli are not properly maintained. Merry go rounds meant for children all old and creaky. There is no restaurant here that can serve hygenic food to the tourists. The small stream that is the main attraction here needs a changeover. Its banks should be cleaned regularily. People should be warned not to throw glass bottles in it or on its sides. ‘‘Jammu Division is one of the most beautiful areas of the state but unfortunately little attention has been given to its development, ’’ says angry Ram Prakash Gupta. Government must take pains to develop and maintain beautiful areas and spots in Jammu. According to him there are beautiful places in Bhasoli and Billawar but the Govt seems sleeping as far as these areas are concerned.
‘‘Dansal is a beautiful spot near Jyotipuram. It has a water fall, and beautiful backdrop of forests, but it has not received as much attention as it deserves’’, rues Shamsher Singh. We should built and upgrade faciities at such places.One of the basic problems about the tourism in Jammu is that the Tourism Department has not done enough to advertise and populraise such places. Literature and leaflets about such places should be published and circulated free to the people. Easily a good number of Vaishno Devi pilgrims can be directed to such places, provided there are proper arrangements for food, shelter and Transport, he emphasis.
Ranjeet Singh emphasises that maintaining of Tourist spots should be done according to a plan. ‘‘That plan unfortunately is absent,’’ he muses tourist places should have as a matter of priority good and well maintained toilet blocks usually where ever they are, they are full of filth. There is lack of water there. According to him it is first thing that should be given thought to. Public convenances are a must.
‘‘Patnitop and Sanasar are visited by thousands of tourists. Although Patnitop has been developed still more needs to be done in terms of comfort and sanitation’’, says Raj Kumar. But he is not happy with facilities at Sanasar. Government canteen there does not offer better food. Lodging facilities are poor. To make this place attractive there should be some amusements in the form of joy rides for children, he adds.
Problem areas :
* Maintenance of Toilets
* Lack of proper and hygienic food
* Absence of Dustbins
* Lack connenctivity to Tourist places
* Erection of temporary and permanent lodging facilities.
* Lack of readily available brochures and related literature about tourist places
Rameshwar Jamwal is very keen to see that a good road is laid from Samba to Mansar. Presently the road is full of ditches and is bumpy. He is also not satisfied with the quality of road leading to Surinsar.
Dharini Mahajan wants that the banks of Tawi should be maintained and developed on the pattern of Canal. ‘‘The beautification work like raising of parks and plantation can make Tawi a beautiful sight to behold, she says.
Mohd Ashraf of Rajouri hopes that the Tourism authorities will develop historical and scenic spot of Noori Chambh. This spot according to him can attract many tourists if the infrastructure there is developed.
Within the city of Jammu is the Mahamaya Forest and the Mahamaya. It offers a breathtaking view of the city. But despite its beauty this spot is not connected with matador or bus service, rues Des Raj.

Upgrade Railway station

A fortnight ago we had presented before our readers an issue relating to the various problems that passengers encounter at Jammu Railway Station. Many readers have come forward with their views about the need to raise the quality of services at the Jammu Railway Station. As the response of the people is fairly large we will not be able to carry the views of all the readers. So in order to present a representative opinion across the whole cross section of the society, we hereby put before the readers as well the concerned authorities the valuable opinion expressed by people in this edition of the Sunday Magazine.
Ravi Malhotra from Link Road Jammu is not happy with the general facilities at the Railway Station. ‘‘Reservation charts are not displayed regularily. Only waiting list charts are displayed. Secondly the charts displayed are not kept under glass cases as the open charts are snatched and torn by the people. There is no proper lighting arrangement so that travellers could see their names in the charts properly’’, he says.
Sudha Mahajan a frequent rail traveller is of the opinion that the toilet facilities need to be upgraded. During rush hours the existing toilets are to not able to cater to the large number of people. A seperate toilet block is needed on plotform 2 and 3, she emphasises.
Kulbir Singh of Digiana is not satisfied with the general sanitation at the Railway Station. Although sweepers are seen sweeping the platforms but there is much more to be done. The railway lines below the platform are full of human excreta. A passenger is ashamed to see such a sight just below the platforms, he sighs.
‘‘Loudspeaker system or the announcement system is faulty. Whenever announcement is made either it is not heard or it is blurred’’, says at
Rajinder Verma, the result according to him is that passengers can neither understand the announcements nor hear them properly.
M N Walli of Roopnagar and Sailesh Gupta of Gandhinagar are concerned with the Security system of the station. ‘‘Previously according to the concerned authorities close circuit cameras were deployed. But now they are defunct,’’ says M N Walli. Sailesh Gupta is of the opinion that CCTV should be installed at all important places in the railway station.
Rajeshwar Singh Jamwal is concerned about the Parking facilities of the station. Though a new and bigger parking lot has been constructed, but due to the huge increase in the number of cars etc this space too will prove small. According to him there is a need to create a multistorey parking facility at the railway station.
Amrik Kour desires that the railway authorities should ensure that rail coaches stop at the allotted slot. Otherwise the passenger does not know where his/her coach will stop. In this way he/she has to run for a long distance to get to his/her coach along with the lugguage. If coaches stop at fixed slots it will streamline passenger comfort. They will in this case wait before their slot, without need to run, shove or push.
‘‘Jammu Railway station will soon cater to a pilgrim rush of about 1 crore. In addition to that there is the usual rush of travellers. There is thus a pressing need to construct one additional plat forms. In this way the pressure on existing platform can be reduced,’’ says Dr S K Sharma.
A M Mir of Srinagar wants that the enquiry system should be upgraded. According to him correct information about departure and arrival of trains is not given. He emphasises that there is a need to make enquiry system people friendly. the railway authorities should erect computer screens on both platforms where on the correct timings of departure and arrival of trains. from particular platform could be displayed. This step would remove the unwanted rush at the enquiry booth which is wrongly constructed between exit and arrival gate, he avers.
Dileep Kumar emphasises that there is a pressing need to give attention to the food available at the Rly Station. Usually according to him the food available at the station is not clean. The authorities have to ensure that food and snacks prepared at the various food stalls and Rly Resteurant is clean and hygenic.
‘‘Enquiry system is usually defunct,’’ says Lokesh Sharma. During night no body attends to the phone calls of the enquiry. He asks the authorities to create a facility so that people could be informed through Mobile phones about the correct timings of arrival and departure. The present computer system of inquiry does not give the clear picture. Presently no dependable or correct information about arrival or departure of trains is given, he rues.
A regular traveller, Sanjay thinks that waiting halls need to be upgraded. Waiting Halls should be kept clean and more waiting halls should be built keeping in view the huge rush of travellers.
Their is huge rush at the general class ticket booking counters. Rly authorities should create newer ticketing counters, thinks Mohit Billowria.
Ashutosh Mehra expresses surprise at the exorbitant charges of car parking. He is amazed that if a same car enters the parking lot more than once in a single day, it is charged as many times. He maintains that for such cars or two wheelers which park more than once/day a separate parking charge for a whole day should be charged. In this case there should be a ticket valid for a whole day.

Upgrading Sewerage and Drainage

In our interactive partnership with our readers we have created a new space under It’s your take. The people can air their views about the various problems and issues that are of concern in this space. for some weeks center we received huge response from our readers on traffic congrestion. The concerned Department of Traffic has taken that response seriously and as a follow up measure some steps have been taken. In continuity to this we have received yet again a fairly good response about the sewerage and Drainage problems. People have aired concern about the deplorable condition of Drains and sewerage system.
Yuri Rajput, a social worker is pretty concerned about the condition of drains and seweage in the city of temples. He says, ‘‘Many Drains or Nallahs criss cross the city. In the heart of Jammu city there is a open drain flowing along the bus stand. One can feel and see the foul smell and dirty condition after visiting the site.’’ These opens drains are a clear invitation to disease, he thinks.
Shalija Dhar avers that the concept of sewerage is still not clear. She thinks that people need to be educated on the matters relating to drainage and swerage. She says, ‘‘There are many cases in the city where the nightsoil is directly carried to the drains from the bathrooms. In such cases people skip the constrution of Sewerage or Soakage pits.’’ She expresses concern that lot of sewerage goes into the Tawi which is often hailed as Surya Putri. According to her, sewerage and drainage has to be modernised to such a degree that no affluents are allowed to pass into the Tawi.
Rohit Sharma of Talab Tillo is highly critical of the State of Sewerage and Drainage in the area of Talab Tillo. ‘‘A big drain or Nallah passes through Talab Tillo, Vijay Nagar Munshi Check Ambica Vihar and Gole Gujral. This area houses almost about lakh population, half of which lives around this Nallah. The filth and dirty water passing through this Nallah can be smelt from three hundred yards,’’ he says. Rohit is at loss to understand that why the Government is not taking steps to cover this Nallah.
K L Bhan of Ambica Vihar while airing similar views says that life has become hell for the people of the locality. The open nallah passing through the locality is a source of great discomfort. While ERA (Environmental reconstruction Agency) is doing work on Sewerage project at Gole Gujral they must take steps to cover the Nallah, he expects.
Shalini Verma has pointed to another Nallah which passing from BSF headquarters and then goes through Kabir Nagar. This serves as both Irrigation Canal as well as an open drain. In absence of fresh water coming to it from the Canal the drain becomes full of filth and is choked with all kinds of dirty matter.
R L Gupta of Trikuta Nagar has an interesting point to make. According to him the unplanned development in the city and lack of any comprehensive plan for sewerage and Drainage is responsible for the worst sanitary condition of the city.
Akash a resident of Link road says that Drainage and Sewerage needs a total revamp. They should be covered and should not in any case be kept open. The sewerage water and other foul water should not be allowed under any circumstances to pass into Tawi. ‘‘We need to keep Tawi clean of all garbage and filth,’’ he emphasises.
Parmjeet Singh of Nanak Nagar says that the big drain that flows by the side of the Nanak Nagar Gurudwara is full of filth and is chocked with polythene. There is no regular clean up operation in the Nallah, he rues.
Monica Jamwal of Gandhi Nagar is sad that the drains around Gole Market Gandhi Nagar are often blocked. When there is a slight drizzle the drain water spills over the road making them muddy and full of foul water. She expects that the drains are cleaned at least once in a week.

Traffic congestion

We have received an overwhelming response to the traffic problem in the city of temples. As such we have already carried the opinion of different people regarding the issue in the last week’s Edition of the Sunday Magazine. Keeping in view the enthusiastic response of our patrons we are pleased to carry their views in this edition as well.
H R Magotra, a former IAS Officer thinks that the Passenger Transport in Jammu city is a most mismanaged af‘fair. State High Court has gone a step further and has commented. ‘‘It is not disputed that the Traffic Scenario in Jammu city is in the state of shambles’’. The worst sufferers are aged, ladies, children, infirms and student community in particular. To others it is a big physical ordeal but to students it is a question of their career. Reason being that state Govt after 1975 gradually started withdrawing STU buses from City routes. In 80’s practically there was no STU bus on City roads. Situation further aggravated when Govt unmindfully without considering implications ordered replacement of big buses (65 seaters) with matadors (16 seaters).
With the growing problem of congestion and pollution in Jammu city there is a great need to improve public transport to the extent that users of personal vehicles can be motivated to use public transport.
For the last thirty years city buses are moving like stray cattles. They must be made to move in orderly manners. If timetable is not need based then it will serve no useful purpose and the existing problem will remain as it is . Need based timetable can only be formulated if reliable data of transport requirement at peak and lean hours is available with the department. Another apposite point which RTO must ensure that frequency must increase or decrease during peak and lean period. It will serve dual purpose, uninterrupted traffic, no jam and commuter will get transport at the Bus Stop. While formulating timetable and fixing frequency and stoppage time at each stop, consultation of operators in unavoidable. Since educational institutions, Govt. offices and Courts opening and closing time during summer and winter are different so the time table of city buses will have to be adjusted accordingly. In the meanwhile both Regulatory and Enforcement Authorities looking after Jammu city traffic may reconsider the existing route structure in consultation with sector/zonal supervisor, because any change after notification would be undersirable.
In the absence of mechanical or electronic devices, deptt is totally dependent upon Police force to regulate traffic and check violations. Under such circumstances there is every possibility of subjectivity and individual vias in their decision making process. This subjectivity can be reduced by fixing hidden cameras at undisclosed locations, punishing the offenders as per breach committed. Enforcement Officer must not forget to mention whether it is a 1st or 2nd or 3rd offence. It will help the Court to determine the punishment. Otherwise the Court is bound to consider every offence as 1st offence and consequently minor punishment. In the case of habitual offenders RTO must exercise his quasi-judicial powers and proceed under sec. 21 and 86 of the act.
Anju Shalla, a regular commutator says, ‘‘Roads in Jammu city are out of bounds for every user. The phenomenal increase within the number of vehicles on the roads has shrunk the road space. The length of roads is getting smaller with the increasing number of private and public transport’’. Heterogenity of traffic is another reason for the chaos. All types of vehicles press for space on the same road be it a truck, a minibus, a load carrier, an auto a car, a two wheeler or a hand drawn cart, she avers. According to her, rash and reckless driving along the roads is another reason for the mess on the city roads. It has resulted in many accidents. Traffic Department should be firm with erring drivers. Traffic signals have to be followed strictly. . Limit on the vehicle speed has to be checked. Helmets and seat belts should be made manditatory for all vehicle users. Parents too have a role in enforcing a sense of road sense and discipline.
Sonam Verma, stresses that road space has shrunk on account of encroachment on the roads. Shops and houses are situated just on the sides of the roads which has added to the problem. Overtaking wrongly and overspeeding have added to the problems of the people. She adds that many homes have multiple cars. Instead of putting one car on the road these people go in seperate cars or two vehicles. Sonam is highly disturbed about traffic jams in the city.
She adds that rationalisation of the use of various resources has to be undertaken to ease the traffic problem in the city.
Mohanlal, a shopkeeper in the busy Kacchi Chowni says that the traffic in the interior of city needs to be regulated. He maintains that during the day no car or such vehicle should be allowed in Pacca Danga, Link road and other interior city areas.
Amrik Singh, says that parking space is a big headache in the city. He opines that multiple parking facilities are need of the hour. He further says, ‘‘the Govt should go in for multistorey parking in select areas of the city.’’

“Traffic problem in Jammu city’’.

Last week we had requested our readers to write about the important issue facing us. In this regard we have created an interactive space for our readers under
“It’s your take”. We identified an issue before our readers. The issue was about growing traffic problem in Jammu City. We are happy to note that our esteemed readers have responded will in their own way about the problem.
Taking in view the urgency and enthusiam shown by our patrons about the problem we are happy to give vent to their feelings regarding Traffic Management in the city.

Vakil Singh Charak, who has sent us an email mulls over the prospect of traffic chowks in the city. He says “Jammu equals Tokyo in traffic density”. Roads, according to him are shabby. He is anguished that if the present situation continues then walkers and Pedistrians will have no space left to walk on the roads. According to him, all roads must have dividers.
All main Chowks should be covered with automative traffic signals through automative traffic system. He does not think it is proper to stop traffic now and then to make way for VVIPs. There should be a dedicated corridor for two wheeler by using chain Dividers. A heavy fine should be imposed on the drivers who have no Driving Licence, he emphasises.
Rami Pandotra, says, “ the vehicular traffic in Jammu city has increased manifold and there is lot of rush of vehicular traffic on all the roads and crossings from Satwari to Janipur and Jewel crossing to Talab Tillo etc, Due to this mushrooming traffic rush so many accidents are taking place daily due to which precious lives of innocent people are being lost unnecessarily and we may say that in Jammu city the deaths on roads are more than the deaths in hospitals or in homes”.
Anyway, he thinks that we should not surrender and express inability to control all this mushrooming traffic rush provided there is right approach, strategy, sincerity, dedication and sense of duty/responsibility/accountability both in the minds of traffic controlling authorities as well as road users/general public.
Rami Pandotra opines that the traffic police department in Jammu city should not take this traffic rush as a big problem and for this nothing extra is required but only a strategy and that is the example of our two main crossings of Jammu city i.e. “Kargil Saheed chowk Gandhinagar” and “Asia chowk” near District Police Line Jammu where there is always normal and smooth flow of traffic regard less to any amount of traffic.
He says, ‘sentry boxes should be erected on all crossings so that the Traffic Police do get permanent places where they can be noticed’. According to him, this can result in a sharp decline in the traffic accidents. “More ever electronic signalling system has prove user friendly for both the road users and road managers”, says Rami Pandotra.
Puspha Verma, a housewife is of the opinion that young girls and boys should not be allowed to drive two vehicles till they are eighteen years old.
She is wary of these reckless children who drive throwing all caution to winds. She has emphasised the need to make matadors pople friendly. In her opinion Matadors must stop at earmasked stops. Close circuit TV Cameras should be installed so that errning drivers are fined on spot.
Rajinder Singh of Nanak Nagar, a car user says that roads need to be widened and more flyovers should be constructed. Some road streches like Jewel-Bohri, Rehari-Janipur and roads in the interior city need to be upgraded. He opines that traffic management has to be on professional lines. More recruitments need to be done in Traffic Department. “They should be equipped with legal teeth so that they can impose heavy fine or even impound the cryying vehicle on the roads”, he says.
R K Gupta of Akhnoor, expossed his unhappiness over the traffic regulation by the Traffic Department. Accordingly him some personnel of the Department engage in long gossip while as the flow of traffic is un attended.
He says, “some new crossings have been badly engineered e.g. the crossing at flyover near Secretariat has multiple crossing needs seperate traffic Policemen to maintain. driver here has to contribute atleast on four roads which sometimes puts strain in his driving capabilities. Such crossings need automative traffic lights”.
Praveen Sharma, an engineer is more concered about maintaining pollution check on the vechicles. He has an interesting idea.
“Make one day a rest day for all private vehicles”, he says. But he wants that public transport system must be upgraded and Matadors or buses should stop at delincated stops only.
“It is a matter of serious concern that police deployed on all important junctions of the Jammu city unfortunately remain active only when the vehicles of VIPs pass whereas for rest of time they leave the posts to sit in any nearby shop to relax, to read newspaper, to gossip, to take tea, to do some account work or even to take rest. But when any VIP’s vehicle comes they show their activity and presence very decently, Opines G.K.Pandita.
Romi, a pedestrian is shocked at the shrinking roadspace for Pedestrians. According to her the footpaths earmarked for Pedestrain traffic should be opened because according to her they are interally ‘closed’ on account of encorachments by shopkeeprs and hawkers.
Suggestions

• Installation of closed circuit cameras.
• Installation of speed checking cameras.
• Earmarking road spaces for two wheelers
• Clearing footpaths frem encroachment.
• Installation of Traffic lights
• Erection of Security boxes.
•Banning driving under 18 years of age.
• Upgrading roads and building new fly overs.
• Regulating VVIP Traffic.

e-mail: take@dailyexcelsior.com