Paradip, Aug. 9: The port town of Paradip is a major hub of activity, but it does not proper traffic police. Nine regular policemen from Paradip police station man the traffic here.

Every day, nearly one lakh people visit the port town. Four-wheelers and cargo-laden heavy vehicles go back and forth. Only nine policemen shoulder the responsibility to control the traffic in the township, which spreads across 25sqkm.

As there is no police station exclusively earmarked for traffic regulation and control here, Paradip police station control the traffic. Saddled with routine duties to maintain law and order, traffic duty has become an arduous task for the cops, said a senior police officer.

Eight constables and a havildar have been deputed from Jagatsinghpur district police the headquarters are entrusted with road traffic duty. The traffic constables guard highly accident-prone junctions and the highway leading to the civil township.

As a result, most of the strategic traffic junctions in the township areas remain unmanned. The commuters and pedestrians are exposed to frequent road mishaps.

“The situation is precarious to say the least. Because of the growth in urban character of the township, authorities seem to have forgotten to pay attention towards the traffic management. Every day, I have to commute through the busy thoroughfares and the adjoining national highway. I always feel unsafe during these times. There is no traffic control in the entire township,” said local resident Dipti Prakash Pattnaik.

“Our infrastructure to man traffic is presently in a poor state. We have at our disposal eight traffic constables especially for traffic duty deployment. The staff available inadequate. We have sought at least 20 more traffic constables. That will restore some order,” said Anil Mishra, inspector, Paradip police station.

“We are trying our best to regulate the traffic. To deal with the situation, policemen from police stations and homeguards are being pressed into service,” Mishra said.

The roads from Bhhotmundei to Atharabanki junction have been identified as accident-prone zones. Besides, the Terminal Chowk, PPL chowk, IFFCO junctions, Badapadia chowk and Biju Pattnaik chowk encounter major road accidents.

“Around 4,000 trucks make their way to the civil township for ore transportation everyday. Around 85 pubic transport buses pass through it. Besides, at least 2,000 other four-wheelers visit on a daily basis. Adding to this, the number of two-wheelers plying on the roads has gone up manifold in recent years. With a none-existent traffic control mechanism, movement on the road is risky,” said Binay Kumar Ray, another resident.

“Of late, roads passing through the residential areas, schools and educational institutions have become vulnerable to road mishaps. Traffic police should be deployed at least on Bank Street and Hotel Chowk where a large number of educational institutions are located. Safety of schoolchildren should be prioritised,” Rout said.

Unauthorised parking further aggravates the situation.