Nagpur KTPS staffers want more traffic cops near Mankapur rly crossing

NAGPUR: Fed up with frequent snarls at Mankapur railway crossing, a group of employees working at Koradi Thermal Power Station (KTPS) met deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Traffic Jeevraj Dabhade and demanded to deploy additional traffic cops to man the vehicular movement.


A delegation led by senior KTPS official Avinash Prabhune suggested six points to the DCP to ease congestion at the crossing after opening of the railway gate. Their suggestions included constructing dividers for 50 to 100 meters on either side of the crossing, enforcing one-lane discipline and penalizing motorists who are caught jumping the lane. Presently, motorists create obstacles by pushing their vehicles in two-three lanes after opening of the gate.

The employees also pointed out that though two traffic cops were deployed, it failed to ease congestion. "Many a time, these cops can be found standing at tea stalls near WOX cooler waiting for defaulters instead of controlling the traffic. It is funny to see 4-5 policemen sitting at Koradi Octroi Naka check post, which is hardly a km away from the crossing, and on the opposite side, around half a km from the Mankapur crossing," they stated.

The delegation also demanded to depute additional cops for at least a month on trial basis for controlling the traffic. "At least 2-4 more policemen must be deputed for imposing fines on defaulters for jumping the lane. Besides disciplining motorists, the fine would also earn some revenue for the state," the memorandum suggested. The DCP assured to increase the manpower from the existing two to three.

Other KTPS staffers MV Pathak, MP Sonalikar, SV Khante, PG Wandhare, SR Deshkar, GA Bawankule, SB Deshpande and others also demanded the DRM (central railway) to direct the gateman to operate the gate according to the movement of the trains. "Many times the gate remains close for more than 15-20 minutes," they added.

On construction of dividers, Dabhade said that as the work for making the road four-lane is going on, no agencies including the Nagpur Municipal Corporation can take up this issue. The DCP advised the KTPS employees to ask their seniors for providing barricades to regulate traffic at the crossing.