*Improvement in traffic mgmt remains distant dream
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Aug 11: The much talked about City Mobility Plan for Jammu and Srinagar prepared for improving the quality of existing public transport system and ensuring better traffic management has remained struck in the official files due to the slackness of all the concerned agencies. This is notwithstanding the fact that Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti has repeatedly laid stress on putting in effective management strategies to ease the difficulties being caused by traffic jams in both the capital cities of the State.
Ever since the formulation of City Mobility Plan for twin capital cities of Jammu and Kashmir by M/s RITES Ltd, a Government of India Enterprise, numerous meetings were convened by previous as well as present Coalition Government in order to give practical shape to the Plan but all the decisions of such meetings have remained confined to the official files with no noticeable development on the ground, official sources told EXCELSIOR.
In a meeting convened on December 9, 2015, the Chief Secretary B R Sharma had discussed the Comprehensive Mobility Plan for Jammu and it was decided that the Plan would be implemented in phased manner. “But the implementation of even first phase has yet not began till date”, sources said.
Thereafter, Deputy Chief Minister, Dr Nirmal Singh, while chairing a meeting to discuss the status of implementation of various developmental initiatives on January 6, 2016 had issued directions for preparation of comprehensive project report for starting monorails in twin capital cities in order to decongest the flow of traffic.
The start of monorails in Jammu as well as Srinagar is one of the major recommendations of M/s RITES Ltd under the Comprehensive City Mobility Plan for capital cities. “But despite lapse of more than eight months such a report is nowhere in sight and this indicates that the directions of the Deputy Chief Minister have not been taken seriously by the concerned authorities”, sources regretted.
“The irony of the system is that majority of the departments which have a major role to play in giving practical shape to the City Mobility Plan, are completely unaware of the developments that have taken place towards implementation of this vital piece of document”, sources further said.
When contacted, almost all the departments put the ball in the court of Planning, Monitoring and Development Department by saying: “Planning Department is the nodal agency for implementation of City Mobility Plan and till date we have not received any specific direction vis-à-vis City Mobility Plan”.
According to the sources, Chief Minister, Mehbooba Mufti, while chairing a meeting to review the traffic management and mobility plan on June 27, 2016 had asked the Financial Commissioner, Planning, Monitoring and Development Department to convene a meeting immediately with the stakeholders to discuss the City Mobility Plan formulated by M/s RITES Ltd for Srinagar and Jammu.
“However, no such meeting has been convened till date and direction of the Chief Minister is yet to be implemented”, sources said, adding “even the Roads and Buildings Department which was directed by the Chief Minister to take up massive widening of roads to create more space for movement of traffic and the pedestrians has failed to implement the direction”.
Notwithstanding the directions from the Chief Minister, removal of encroachments from the roads, lanes, by-lanes and footpaths to facilitate hassle-free movement of vehicles and people and setting up of a Traffic Engineering Institute in the State to get locally trained and professionally qualified experts in traffic management have remained a distant dream.
“The non-serious approach towards the directions of none else than the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister is notwithstanding the fact that considerable increase in traffic and shrinking roads have virtually created mess in both the capital cities”, sources said.
It is pertinent to mention here that M/s RITES Ltd in Comprehensive City Mobility Plan has flagged critical infrastructure needs for upgrading mobility within the cities keeping in view the traffic growth and consequent challenges up to 2030. It has suggested implementation of mass transport system like monorail, bus rapid transport system, in-land waterways transport system, development of parking spaces and widening of roads.
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