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| File picture of damaged signal posts in Berhampur after Phailin hit the city |
Berhampur, Nov. 22: Police here are finding it difficult to control vehicular movement with signal lights lie defunct since Phailin hit the state.
Traffic lights were installed in the city four years ago at two places including Tata Benz Square and Town Hall Square.
“The lighting system immensely helped us to control traffic efficiently at these two heavily crowded places with limited manpower. But after these lights were damaged due to Phailin, we are facing difficulties in controlling the traffic,” said traffic inspector Trilochan Swain.
Subash Chandra Samant, a traffic constable deployed at Town Hall Square, said: “The high mast light at the busy intersection has not been restored. Now there is neither streetlight, nor the traffic post. The situation becomes worst during evening and night when we are operating from the roadside and nobody recognises our hand signals from a distance.”
Another traffic constable Ram Shankar Mahapatra deployed at Tata Benz Square said: “The absence of the traffic lights has compelled us to control the traffic manually.”
One inspector, 11 assistant sub-inspectors, 58 constables and 38 home guards manage traffic. “The manpower is not sufficient. We need another 50 members for traffic management,” said traffic inspector Swain.
Sub-divisional police officer Thakur Prasad Patra said as the residents and the city traffic personnel were accustomed with traffic light system, they would definitely feel uncomfortable with the manual system.
City’s municipal commissioner Ajit Kumar Mishra said the Berhampur Municipal Corporation officials were now busy in restoration of streetlights damaged by the cyclone. “We have not yet restored, traffic lights will take some more time,” he said.