Pindi’s top cop suspends 60 traffic wardens

The Rawalpindi police chief on Thursday suspended at least 60 wardens of the traffic department for being absent from their posts that caused hours-long traffic jams in the various areas of the garrison city a day earlier.

City Police Officer (CPO) Khalid Hamdani also issued orders for department action against the personnel for negligence and carelessness. He also had a traffic monitoring control room set up at his office premises.

He also issued orders to officers of the traffic department to perform duties on the city and roads instead of offices. The chief traffic officer (CTO), the senior traffic officer and the deputy superintendent of police (DSP) at the Traffic Headquarters were also instructed to perform field duty ‘till further orders’.

On Wednesday, the traffic on the main avenues of Rawalpindi, including Rawat-Kutchery road, Jhelum Road, Bostan Road, Morgah Road, and the adjacent highways was disrupted.

Senior officials including the Rawalpindi Regional Police Officer Syed Khurram Ali and the Rawalpindi CPO were also stuck in the traffic jam while City Traffic Police (CTP) personnel – apart from two to three traffic wardens – were absent from their posts near the Soan Bridge.

In light of the situation, the CPO summoned the officers and staff to the CPO office. Rawalpindi CTO Taimur Khan, the senior traffic officer, in-charge and staff of traffic office branches attended the meeting.

CPO Hamdani reprimanded the traffic department officers and staff while issuing orders for the suspension of 60 wardens.

According to those at the meeting, around half the staff of the traffic department that showed up for the meeting were dispatched for field duty. According to the CPO, only the driving license branch needed to remain open at the traffic headquarters.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 4^th, 2023.