The capital city witnessed less traffic police on the streets amid the ongoing anti-discrimination student movement on Saturday.
Private transport like cars, motorbikes, and auto-rickshaws ruled the roost in the city as buses were hardly plying the streets mainly in the afternoon. Officials of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) said they withdrew members of traffic police from various police boxes in the capital on Saturday to ensure their security.
Md Munibur Rahman, additional police commissioner of DMP said, "Traffic police are deployed at some places considering the overall situation. But we have withdrawn some members from certain places in a bid to protect them from violence."
The additional police commissioner said this in reply to a question about some empty traffic police boxes in the city.
During visit to Badda via Rampura, no traffic police were seen on the streets. The similar scenario was seen from Nabisco to Niketan Road. But the presence of traffic police was seen from Moghbazar to Segunbagicha Road. Nayan, a ride-sharing biker in Tejgaon, told this correspondent that he had been on Mirpur, ECB, and Airport Road since the morning. Compared to other days, these roads were free from traffic congestion while he also noticed the absence of traffic police in these areas.
However, he said that the presence of traffic police was thin due to an increasing number of students staging protests on the road today.
Ramzan, a tea-stall owner said, “If police sense any danger, they immediately disappear from the road.”
Referring some recent events, he also commented that everyone gets panicked due to unrest.
As the city’s main roads witnessed ban on transport, auto-rickshaws have become the primary means of transportation for the common people.
Samsher, a battery-run rickshaw puller said, “Today, I am able to earn a handsome amount of money due to a lack of public transport. As there is no traffic congestion, I can complete any ride quickly. Previously, we could not access to Hatirjheel, but now all drivers like me ride through that area.”
He has also said that he saw traffic only at Kawran Bazar intersection on his way to Tejgaon via Hatirjheel.
Preferring anonymity, a traffic officer said “Yesterday, one of my colleagues narrowly escaped from attack while he was on his duty. Realizing the danger, he took shelter in a nearby tea stall. Later, he left the place changing his cloths.”
“Due to unrest, the city has witnessed the presence of fewer traffic police,” he he told the Bangladesh Post.
To know more about this issue when this correspondent tried to contact Traffic DC, they could not be reached.
ADC (Traffic) of Tejgaon Zone told the Bangladesh Post, “Violence is escalating. Traffic police department does not have sufficient staff to face them. Hence, they are asked to stay safe.”
