Bhubaneswar: The city is set to have a second traffic police station at Chandrasekharpur with the home department on Tuesday sanctioning 171 posts for the proposed police station. The city now has one traffic police station at AG Square.

The new traffic police station will have jurisdiction over eight police stations - Nandankanan, Infocity, Chandrasekharpur, Nayapalli, Khandagiri, Tamando, Chandaka and Jatni.

The second police station will come up for Rs 1.91 crore.

"The new traffic police station will be useful for traffic enforcement in Bhubaneswar. Traffic management in the city will also improve with the second police station," said Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police commissioner Y.B. Khurania.

Almost 99,332 people were penalised for various traffic violations last year.

The Cuttack-Bhubaneswar police had proposed to set up the traffic police station at Chandrasekharpur since the area had witnessed rapid urban growth due to the presence of major IT companies, technical institutes and residential colonies.

The existing traffic police station lacks adequate manpower to manage the affairs of the city with more than 10 lakh vehicular on its roads.

More than 80,000 vehicles are added to the city's fleet every year.

Police sources said according to the Bureau of Police Research and Development, an organisation working under Union home ministry, the requirement of traffic personnel for a city such as Bhubaneswar was around 600. However, only 160 traffic personnel are now attached to the traffic police station.

"The existing traffic police station is also entrusted with the job of VVIP duty and traffic management during law and order situations. The only police station is also finding it difficult to manage the vehicular population of the city which has been expanding every year," said a cop.

To meet the acute shortage of traffic personnel, the police in January last year had launched student traffic volunteer scheme and has roped in more than 150 students for the job.