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| Now traffic mess threat to security in Srinagar | | 'Militants took advantage of chaos on streets' | | Hyder Ali
Early Times Report
Srinagar, May 25: The traffic mess has emerged as major security threat in Srinagar, while security agencies are probing if militants deliberately took advantage of the peak hour rush to execute recent attacks on May 23 when three cops were shot dead in two separate incidents in the summer capital.
Even as police has its CCTV cameras installed at major strategic locations, sources said the video footage is unlikely to give any authentic clue. "As one can see in the footage, there's a total traffic chaos in the City at that point of time, while the bumper-to-bumper jams make it difficult to track down movement of any suspicious vehicles as its number plate is rarely visible in the video," said a police official.
Intelligence experts believe that militants took advantage of the traffic mess in the peak hours knowing that it would be difficult for the security foces to react instantly. "Given the traffic jams, it was obvious that the response time would be a bit slow, because reaching the spot becomes difficult, something which militants presumably took advantage of," the official said.
Terming the traffic chaos a major threat to security, experts said there was dire need for the Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to call a unified command meet to formulate a foolproof strategy.
Police said when militants struck in City on Monday there was so much of traffic on the roads that it remained impossible for them to lay timely cordon for any search or frisking operations.
Officials said given the gridlocks, the police was unable to improve security arrangements. "There's a need to have Naaka at most vital locations but the problem is that if any such security post is erected, it will only worsen the traffic chaos and commuters will end up blaming police," said an official.
Intelligence agencies are probing if it could be the same militants who targeted twin locations in Srinagar. On Monday, in the first attack at around 10:00 AM, bike-borne militants appeared in Baghe-Ali-Mardan locality of north city, where two cops were killed from pointblank range.
One- and-a- half-hour later, eight miles away, another cop was shot dead on the Tengpora highway. The time-gap between the two incidents suggested that the same group of militants might have carried out the attack. "See given the traffic congestion enroute, it takes this much of time to travel from Hawal to Tengpora," said an official.
Sources said, as of now, though security has been beefed-up, some of the crucial spots along the VIP routes, mainly in the civil lines remain unattended.
The "faulty" traffic diversion plan, in place since April when the arterial Jehangir Chowk-Ram Bagh route was closed, is being seen as a major culprit behind the prevalent mess.
Official documents reveal that in November 2015, the SSP Traffic Maqsood Uz Zaman had asked the Divisional Commissioner Dr Asgar Hassan Samoon to get Batamaloo bus stand shifted to Parim Pora, before putting the much-awaited diversion plan in place. But the divisional administration slept over the issue.
Finally in March, when Governor NN Vohra sought security audit of the JCRB route where a flyover is under construction, the Divisional Commissioner found no options but to get the diversion plan enforced hurriedly, "half-baked".
"Relocation of the Batamaloo Bus Stand to Parim Pora would have made the diversion plan hassle-free but the failure of the administration to get it shifted has finally emerged as a major security threat," the officials said.
They said the biggest flaw with the prevalent traffic diversion plan was that it has no scope for any "Plan-B ", which is vital to tackle any eventuality. "In a conflict zones, there's always a need for Plan-B, which in case of traffic management means an alternative route plan. But presently there's no scope for any further emergency diversions," said an official. "There's even no dedicated connectivity for mobility of ambulances or police vehicles."
Though on May 4, the Divisional Commissioner chaired a high level meeting asking District Commissioner Srinagar Farooq Ahmed Lone to personally monitor the relocation of Batamaloo bus stand, there has been no breakthrough.
Officials said some senior politicians got the Srinagar Development Authority owned Parim Pora bus stand converted into a slum for their workers, and now resist their relocation.
The SDA has been mysteriously silent over the encroachment of its prized asset at Parim Pora. |
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