BHOPAL: The efforts of the district administration to keep residents indoors are not yielding the desired results. It is one of the reasons that Bhopal is witnessing a spurt in the number of corona cases. The district administration, too, is facing a crisis and officials say that, due to unwarranted movement on the roads, it is becoming difficult to extend help to someone in need. The cops are also taking action against vendors who are illegally opening their shops due to a shortage of food. If everybody stays indoors, the administration says, it will be easy to identify the pockets where help is needed.
There is no area of Bhopal where one does not find unwarranted movement.
The police are taking action against aimless wanderers and purposeless travellers, but the number of accused being booked is way fewer than the number of persons who are roaming about without reason.
Bhopal collector Avinash Lavania and deputy inspector-general (DIG) Irshad Wali are also taking stock of the restrictions in Bhopal, but the situation is not getting any better. The travellers coming out of their homes are actually inducing others to follow suit. On any given day, the police are taking action against 50 such persons who are violating the lockdown orders. They are either travelling unnecessarily, or they are found guilty of opening their shops during lockdown hours.
The poor section of society is already being given rations by the government. Now, there is no real need to come out of oneís home. But, when caught, people are putting forward such excuses as going to some nearby shop for groceries or to fetch vegetables.
Most of the travellers do not have any reason and they are fined if caught; and, if not, they roam around with impunity. The cops have also started barricading the roads and leaving the place, instead of keeping a watch on the spot. The commuters use some alternative route and no one stops them; this is one of the reasons why illegal public movement goes on unchecked.
The police are taking action against aimless wanderers and purposeless travellers, but the number of accused being booked is way fewer than the number of persons who are roaming about without reason
Cops getting frustrated
The policemen are also getting frustrated due to a similar routine over the past one year. This is why they put up barricades on a few roads and avoid movement on other roads
This has now been normalised and commuters are pretty much aware that they can easily dodge the police if they do not travel on the prime roads that are barricaded and use some alternative lanes
240 cops are already corona-positive and 7deaths in this current wave have shattered the morale of the policemen
DIGspeak
DIG Irshad Wali says that the public have to stay indoors and that the cops will impose further restrictions on the roads. They will also arrange for counselling sessions for their staff, if required
