Sajidah Yousuf
Srinagar, Jan 5: With the government efforts trying to contain the spread of new Covid-19 variant Omicron, on the contrary the SOPs issued by the authorities go for the toss.
The commuters says that the authorities in the Srinagar city has turned a blind eye into the traffic overcrowding, leading to threat of mass spread of the virus.
Commuters allege that restriction on cabs to enter in the city has led to overcrowding of local buses, where maintaining social distancing is difficult.
Top officials of the Srinagar traffic department said that they are following were following the orders issued by the High Court.
“We don’t know anything about the violation of Covid-19 SOPs. We are following the court directions,” the official said.
He said that the new order is issued to de-congest Srinagar from unnecessary traffic mess so that smooth commute is possible. Whereas Covid-19 is considered, it is everywhere.
“Be it a small cab or big bus, we are in the grip of the virus. Rather, in buses social distancing is somehow possible than in small cabs,” he said.
The official further said that the directions of restricting cabs in the city were issued after a well thought process by the High Court to de-congest Srinagar.
“We will look into the requirement of transport at different places and take the necessary action as required and redresses the issues of the general public,” he said.
The official of the Srinagar traffic department added that prior to this order, all cab drivers used to park their vehicles anywhere on the road, thus violating their contract carriage permit.
“They have to pick up the passengers from their point of origin to the destination. They are not supposed to stop at multiple stops. It had a negative impact on our local transportation. The order was not followed as it should have been. The new order will soon bear its fruits,” the official said.
