PACHU MENON
Fighting crime means more than just enforcing laws. It necessarily needs to be seen as an approach to crime fighting through community service and problem solving With the solving of the murder mystery of a 30-year-old woman from Curtorim within 24 hours of the crime, Goa Police yet again gave ample evidence of its investigative skills. However, is policing only about solving murders and theft cases! Actually speaking, fighting crime means more than just enforcing laws. It necessarily needs to be seen as an approach to crime fighting through community service and problem solving.
A few years back, concerned by a spate of robberies in South Goa, the police had requested the public to lend a helping hand in apprehending the culprits. What started off as a novelty soon petered out into a wasteful exercise with the locals losing enthusiasm in equally fast time. ‘After all the cops are being paid to do the tedious job, why bother!’ With such a mindset, it becomes difficult to envisage police-public participation module to tackle crime.
The ‘Traffic Sentinel’ scheme of the Goa Police which was met with resistance by the public no sooner it took off is a vivid example of this mentality. When the police and public closely work together it encourages participation and ownership for all parties and helps foster trust between the police and the members of public.
The following instances show that things could have improved for the better if the ‘partnership’ envisioned had actually materialized! For a state inundated by a virtual deluge of developmental works, the Atal Setu, as that engineering marvel which has reduced traffic at key entry points to Goa’s capital city, Panaji, finds itself tagged high up on the list of novelties. What started off being described as a colossal waste of public money, the manifold advantages of having the third bridge across River Mandovi couldn’t be better described.
The perennial bottlenecks at either ends of the old bridge(s) which made commuting between Panaji and the Northern districts of the state a harrowing experience is well said to have been resolved with the commissioning of the new cable-stayed bridge between the towns of Panaji and Porvorim carrying NH 66 over the tidal part of the Mandovi River. Moreover the panoramic view the drive along the 5 kilometers stretch of the bridge affords makes it a modern tourist attraction as well. But it is the ban imposed on two and three-wheelers using the new Mandovi Bridge over apprehensions of high velocity winds posing danger to them that has diluted the excitement.
Arguments to the contrary notwithstanding, it is better that these warnings are treated with a certain measure of caution as it is for the first time that a new thoroughfare has come up thirty meters above the water surface in the state. Moreover, the regularity with which special drives are conducted against prominent traffic violations by the state police would have one believing that strict adherence to the laws that govern and regulate vehicular movement while driving has made traffic infringements an obnoxious practice of the past.
Nonetheless the escapades indulged in by biker teens on Atal Setu should goad the concerned citizens from the area who, along with traffic personnel, could ensure a modicum of common sense prevails on the ‘pride of the state’.
Now a curious case of the police rounding up the culprit in record time, albeit after a video clip on the social media goes viral! Are the police to act only when video clips on the misdemeanor of irresponsible drivers goes viral on social media making it impossible for them not to take notice of the reproachful acts!
Identifying, tracing and penalizing errant motorists for their acts of transgression on the roads is squarely the responsibility of the law enforcers and if they have done it in record time, they have nothing to be commended about “ they are just doing their duty.
However, a feeling that if the video clip of the ‘irresponsible’ act of the driver was posted by anybody other than the former Panaji MLA, it would not have welcomed such an equally swift action by the police continues to dwell in one’s mind! Motorists have not taken the warning against the usage of cell phones while driving that seriously to warrant any shock on the actions of the said bus driver who ‘unfortunately’ fell victim to the roving eyes of the ex-legislator.
Despite the knowledge about the dangers posed, motorists are known to indulge in this self-pampering fascination with an irritating regularity.
Even the sight of two-wheeler riders contorting their posture to ‘accommodate’ the mobiles in the crook of their necks has not invited the wrath of fellow commuters who have been ignoring this as an inevitable nuisance on the roads. Ironically it is the police personnel deployed to check traffic offences who have been the worst culprits when it comes to the use of mobiles while on duty.
And finally an apt case where public intervention could curb the nuisance of anti-social activities in an area in Margao. News reports in a section of the press that traders in Margao have sought action against the rampant anti-social activities being carried out on the old station Road with blatant impudence should come as a wake-up call to the Margao Police who have time and again being cautioned about these happenings. Vicinities of bus stands and railway stations in any town are always breeding grounds for criminal elements to ply their trade in full public glare despite assurances made by law enforcers to the contrary. Umpteen petitions already made to police authorities have failed to elicit a favourable response with anti-social activities continuing without any check. Gambling, prostitution and people causing a ruckus on the roads in an inebriated state are routine affairs here.
It is wrong to believe that these nefarious affairs are restricted to the area between the footbridge in the old premises and Apollo hospital. In fact, it is the stretch between Apollo hospital and the KRC station and further along the bypass road to the Power House that should be the immediate area of concern for the police. In spite of bringing to the notice of the authorities about the threats posed to the security of the region by the illegal shanties and vendors frequenting the zone, the manner in which a Nelson’s eye has been turned towards the shabby happenings raises a lot of unnecessary questions vis-Ã -vis the insensitiveness of the police to the woes of the area.
