A man, Sonu Chauhan, who was apparently caught in a traffic jam at the Subhash intersection in Ferozabad on Tuesday, got to manage the traffic himself for two hours after he went straight to the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) to complain about the situation. The SP, Sachindra Patel, instead, asked Sonu to manage the traffic and designated him as 'traffic volunteer' in the rank of circle officer.
Sonu wore a traffic safety vest and helmet, sat in a police SUV, with several other policemen accompanying him and went about managing traffic at the intersection.
Ferozabad traffic inspector Ramdutt Sharma, who accompanied Sonu, said, "Challans were issued to eight vehicles, for wrong parking and for driving on the wrong side of the road.
A total of Rs 1,600 in cash was collected as fine. The remaining fine amount would be paid by the offenders at the traffic office. We will continue with this experiment and ensure better community participation in improving traffic situations. We followed Sonu's commands for two hours and effectively regulated traffic flow and managed to decongest the road."
Sonu said, "The experiment has made me understand the problems of traffic constables and the problem that arises when we, members of public, flout rules. If one vehicle takes a wrong turn, the entire system gets thrown out of gear. I have definitely become a more responsible citizen after this experiment."
(With IANS inputs)