PU council poll: Commuters fume over long traffic jams amid security checks

Deepankar Sharda

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 28

While the Panjab University campus is buzzing with a sea of activities ahead of the students’ council elections scheduled on September 5, people are fuming over long traffic jams for hours outside the campus. Beefed up security and extensive checking of vehicles at all entry gates of the campus is leading to chaos on the main roads near the university.

Not only the general public, but campus residents are also facing a tough time dealing with the spike in traffic near the campus. At all three entry gates, the Chandigarh Police along with the university security, carry out a brief checking of vehicles for any kind of dangerous weapon. Not only weapons, the security personnel also ensure a complete ban on outsiders on the campus amid the ongoing election preparation.

“We are just performing our duty. We have to check all vehicles and stop outsiders from entering the university campus. In the process, we have to stop each vehicle for a few seconds, and if there is a need to inspect, then the process takes a few more minutes. In case an outsider tries to enter the PU campus, we have to divert the vehicle from the gate only. In such a scenario, traffic jams are unavoidable,” said a university security personal seeking anonymity.

On Wednesday, an ambulance carrying a patient and taking it to the PGIMER got stuck in a traffic jam. Despite blowing the emergency siren, the vehicle could not move on the road crossing university’s gate no. 2. “Gate no. 2 (near Sector 15) is the most affected from the traffic chaos. This road not only connects Sector 15 to the campus, but also extends to the PGIMER and other sectors located on the Madhya Marg. This road is a direct approach for people coming from Mohali and other sectors located on Vidya Path. The traffic police should rescue the general public from this chaos either by controlling the traffic manually or by increasing the traffic signal duration till the time of elections,” said Prerna, a Sector 15 resident.

Along with the general public, the campus residents are also face a harrowing time, especially during peak afternoon and evening hours. “It’s becoming a difficult task to reach our home these days. The situation gets tough during school closing hours when our children face bumper-to-bumper traffic for hours before reaching the campus. We literally can’t travel in vehicles to nearby areas,” said Dr Sukbir, a campus resident.

Amid the election fervour, the authorities have already observed a spike in vehicular movement inside the campus. The parking lots of the Student Centre, along with major departments, including Department of Laws, Arts Block and University Institute of Law Studies (UILS), are witnessing a huge rush. “The university is conducting counselling and some events simultaneously, which is leading to a huge rush of vehicles on the campus. Above all, the number of vehicles has also increased as the election date approaches. The spike in traffic is due to the number of events at the campus,” said Dr Anupama Kapoor, a visitor at the campus.