Not good for morale: Interior ministry denying ticket spoils to traffic wardens

ITP officials say they are not being given ‘promised’ share.

ISLAMABAD: The government has been defaulting on the 25 per cent share of Islamabad Traffic Police (ITP) from the funds collected through traffic fines for the last few years. 

According to the rules, ITP wardens get 25 per cent of the total amount of fines they impose on road-users for violations. In 2014, the government collected over Rs170 million under the head of traffic tickets.

The Interior Ministry has not shared the 25 per cent ‘reward’ with the traffic police since 2012-13. “Not a single penny of the amount has so far been sanctioned,” said Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Traffic Malik Matloob Ahmad.



The ‘reward money’ is distributed among the field staff depending on their performance and the number of tickets they issue.

Due to the non-payment of the share, the staff is disappointed and demoralised, and the department has been finding it tough to maintain standards due to the overall financial crunch.

The SSP said no new vehicle had been added to the department since 2006. He added the shortage of vehicles was also hindering performance.

ITP has 40 cars and 70 motorbikes for patrol. “At present, ITP needs 70 new vehicles, including cars, pick-ups, trucks and forklifters, and 80 motorcycles for effective policing,” said Ahmad.

He said that the road safety education fund has also not been released for the last several years, resulting in lack of public awareness programmes.

“Everything goes into the pockets of the high-ups. We get pollution and curses only,” said an on-duty warden. He was hesitant to divulge details, fearing backlash from the ‘high-ups’.

Relevant officials at the ministry were not available for comment despite repeated attempts. A deputy secretary said he was not authorised to comment on the issue.

In 2014, the traffic police issued 712,128 tickets amounting to Rs218,710,900. Of the total fines, ITP collected Rs177,584,300 from January 1 to December 31.

The highest number of tickets, 95,691, was issued for not fastening seat belts, followed by 82,540 tickets for not wearing a helmet.

Over 46,000 tickets were issued for parking in a no-parking area; around 49,000 for over-loading, 36,202 for reckless driving, 32,574 for violating traffic signals, while 29,384 tickets were issued for using mobile phones while driving.

Over 25,000 drivers were penalised for not yielding the right of way to other vehicles, around 23,000 each for lane violation and obstructing traffic, while 19,794 persons were found driving without licenses.

With only seven functional speed checking radars out of the total 65, the ITP managed to issue 8,868 speeding tickets. Parking at a bus stop landed over 14,000 drivers in hot waters in 2014.

A total of 27,738 buses were fined for traffic rules violations. In 2013, 628,463 tickets were issued and Rs182,653,300 were generated.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 19^th, 2015.