MARGAO
Blame it on a goof up or simply communication gap, citizens were caught unawares as the police shut some of the roads, including the Borda road leading to Fatorda on Wednesday evening, triggering uproar.
Citizens from Fatorda, including women who had come to collect their children after tuition and a citizen who had a flight abroad later in the evening, were all stranded at Borda near Eurico Silva’s house after the traffic police closed the road heading to the Ravindra Bhavan and Stadium.
Heated exchanges ensued between the motorists and citizens and the traffic cops, who insisted that the road has been shut down in view of the rehearsal and drill ahead of Thursday’s National Games inauguration at the Nehru stadium.
Irate citizens, however, questioned the rationale behind closing the road sans intimation, saying this only goes to show the lack of professionalism by the police and the district administration in handling the situation.
Another women citizen wondered whether the citizens of Fatorda are destined to suffer trauma and hardships in view of the events happening at the Nehru stadium. “We showed the passes to the traffic cops, but the police remained unmoved”, a lady pointed out, asserting that the road cannot be shut down without a notification.
Another citizen pointed out that residents of Fatorda and outside have taken in their stride Thursday’s traffic arrangements because the authorities announced in advance the PM’s scheduled visit and the traffic arrangements. “Today, the authorities simply blocked the road without any prior announcements, which caught the motorists and citizens off guard”, she said.
Margao Municipal Ward Councillor Vitorino Tavares told the media that the issue would not have arisen if the district authorities and the traffic police had made prior announcement of the road closure.
“I saw a woman stranded on the road after the police stopped her from collecting her daughter from the tuition classes. Such things should not have occurred when the citizens have been cooperative with the authorities”, Tavares added.
