Hang in there: Lahoris face stringent security ahead of final ODI match

LAHORE:

The final ODI match between Pakistan and Zimbabwe was held amid stringent security on Sunday which also became a cause of vexation for motorists.

Traffic on several roads remained jammed for several hours as parts of The Mall, Canal Road and Ferozepur Road were cordoned off. People who had come to see the match also faced inconvenience as the road from Muslim Town Mor to Kalma Chowk was blocked for traffic from 2pm till 1am.

Long queues of cars were seen stranded on the Canal Bank Road, Ferozepur Road and Gulberg’s Main Boulevard. Spectators were told to park their cars at a considerable distance from the stadium and walk towards the stadium.

Muhammad Naveed, an enthusiast waiting in a queue for security check, said, “We had to walk miles to reach the stadium as the nearest parking we could find was in front of Hafeez Centre.”

Agha Yasir, another spectator, said that the authorities should have informed citizens about the change in parking arrangements beforehand.

Operations DIG Dr Haider Ashraf said they were aware of the hassle citizens had had to face, “but we cannot make the smallest of compromises on the security of our cricket teams”. He requested citizens to cooperate with the police. “It’s just for one day,” he said.

More than 12,000 policemen were deployed on roads and around the stadium and 2,000 policemen were kept on standby. The DIG said policemen had carried out a search operation in the stadium and had apprehended eight suspects.

Ashraf said 12 special check posts were set up from Barkat Market to Ghalib Market and on Ferozepur Road and security personnel videotaped each person passing through the check posts.

PITB officials and policemen conducted biometric verification of spectators through special devices. PITB director Burhan Rasool said, “We checked 10-20 per cent of the visitors before the match.”

As many as 1,600 traffic wardens performed duty at the final match. They diverted traffic on Ferozepur Road, approaching Kalma Chowk from the east, towards Barkat Market, then Canal Road to go back to Ferozepur Road.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 1^st, 2015.