Abandoned police vehicles on flyovers raise security concern in Amritsar

Even as the police in the border city always remain on high alert amid persistent threats of arms and explosive smuggling from across the International Border, glaring lapses in ground-level security arrangements have come to light.

A visit to several key flyovers, where police vehicles were stationed as part of enhanced surveillance revealed an entirely different picture.

Instead of active monitoring or visible police presence, vehicles were found parked without any personnel around. Some of these vehicles appeared to have been abandoned for days, raising concerns about their intended role in enforcing security.

These vehicles were stationed following a series of hand grenade attacks on police establishments, including police stations and police posts, in different parts of the city as well as in the border state earlier this year. Hand grenades explosions were witnessed at the Islamabad police station, the Gumtala police chowki (which has now been shifted), the abandoned Fatehgarh Churian road police post and the Gurbaxnagar police chowki.

These explosions were carried out at the behest of foreign-based gangsters and terrorists backed by Pakistan’s ISI.

The Punjab Police have also made considerable seizures of explosives, including hand grenades, IED and a huge quantity of sophisticated weapons this year.

Several parked patrol vehicles were in a state of disrepair — rusted, dusty and with broken lights — while one of the vehicles on the Gumtala flyover had deflated tyres. The condition of these vehicles not only undermines their symbolic purpose as deterrents but also raises questions about the maintenance and utilisation of police resources.

The absence of cops from these vehicles also raises a question mark. Residents express worries that such unattended vehicles create a false sense of security.

“These vehicles are supposed to be a sign that police are keeping watch. But if no one is there and the vehicles do not even move, what purpose are they serving?” remarked Anil Sharma, a local resident.

According to the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), these vehicles were stationed as immediate

were stationed as immediate preventive measures at that time when unscrupulous elements were targeting police establishments. But now we have taken enough counter measures like installing tin sheets and CCTV cameras on the flyovers and enhanced patrolling in various areas to thwart any untoward incident. The vehicles currently stationed at the sites were meant for patrolling in nearby areas.

With the region facing heightened cross-border smuggling threats, the current state of these flyover deployments raises serious concerns. Citizens hope the authorities will take swift corrective measures to ensure that security protocols are not just visible —but effective.