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A disciplined drive
A
group of dedicated citizens have joined hands
with the police forces to bring a semblance of
order to the chaotic city traffic. So please stop
the next time you see a red light, or you are
sure to make Nirdhar volunteers see red.
Nirdhar, set up a little over a year ago, is a
registered organisation  that
works towards traffic and pollution control in
close association with the traffic police and
the RTO. Mrs Sheela Padmanabhan, Managing Trustee,
oversees the functioning of Nirdhar. Any concerned
citizen is welcome to register as a volunteer.
Currently, the organisation has 200 members, 80
of them active participants. Nirdhar has a simple
yet effective plan of action. Once a week, for
two hours, 35 to 40 volunteers on an average meet
at a designated 'chowk' or cross road.
A few policemen and representatives from the
RTO are also present at the scene of action. Clad
in bright yellow Nirdhar jackets or aprons, caps
and  badge
in place, they purposefully head, whistle in hand,
to take up their respective positions. The next
two hours are spent playing 'cop'. They direct
traffic, check offenders and discipline jaywalkers.
Any motorist caught breaking the signal, or not
possessing a license or PUC certificate is stopped
and led away to the waiting arms of the police.
They also have a 'Trax' where a few volunteers
sit huddled together blaring messages from megaphones,
distributining awareness leaflets to passersby
and display banners on road safety. "The
whole atmosphere is charged and we generally create
a lot of 'hungama," quips Sheela.
The strict vigilance invariably pays off and collections
average anywhere between Rs 5000 to Rs 8000. Interestingly,
Nirdhar volunteers receive complete co-operation
and unstinted support from the traffic police. "We
have never rebuked or criticised the way the police
operate.We do not wish to take over their jobs,
we just assist them," says Sheela. "We
are aware that attitudes cannot be changed overnight.
All we hope to do is instill a sense of duty among
the citizens," she continues. Nirdhar's activities
have evoked diverse reactions from citizens. Most
have lauded their efforts with even supermarkets
and schools requesting them to help out during peak
traffic outside the shops and schools. Nirdhar volunteers
have helped direct traffic and ease the flow during
major events like 'Ganesh Visarjan' and 'Chaturshringi
Mela'. "We are very much part of the police
'bandobust' " says Sheela gleefully.
There is, of course, the defiant motorist who resents
being hauled up by an ordinary citizen, which often
leads to an heated argument.
When their authority is questioned, the errant motorist
is
politely reminded that all citizens are policemen
in plainclothes and it would help if he behaved
like a responsible one. And if the request comes
from the 86-year-old volunteer who directs traffic
at 'Appa Balwant Chowk', one cannot help but comply. |
