LAHORE: Traffic Wardens deployed on important roads and signals of the provincial capital have been ‘openly’ violating the official order barring them from using mobile phone when on duty.

While there are an increasing number of traffic congestions in the city, most of the wardens are avoiding actively regulating traffic except on the VVIP routes and areas.

Either they skip duty deliberately, disappearing from the designated duty points temporarily or extensively use mobile phones on the job in ‘connivance’ with their superiors and vigilance staff.

The incumbent city traffic police chief, who hardly conducts any surprise raids on city roads to check working of his subordinates and the violations they commit, had to issue an order to his patrolling and stationary staff, asking them to avoid using mobile phones in face of growing public complaints in this regard.

An order issued on Dec 1 titled ‘Usage of mobile phone during duty hours’ states, “It is hereby directed that traffic officers/officials will not use mobile phone during duty hours. All duty officers will collect mobile phones from traffic officers/officials before departure to their designated duty points/beats. Moreover, only sector in-charge and duty officers of City Traffic Police Lahore are allowed to use mobile phones during duty hour.”

“In case of non-compliance of such said orders strict departmental action will be taken against the delinquent officers/officials,” the communique warns.

A city traffic police source told Dawn that duty officers posted in various sectors hardly collected mobile phones from wardens who were found using them even during peak traffic hours. And the incumbent city traffic officer (CTO) is not the first one to issue such orders as his predecessors too had been giving such directions which were ignored by their subordinates within in days if not hours, he added.

The source said wardens were usually active on a few key roads, including The Mall, Jail Road, Lower Mall, Gulberg’s Main Boulevard and Ferozepur Road, and the places like Model Town and Gulberg because of heavy traffic volumes and VVIP movements.

He, however, said the sectors of Misri Shah, Shahdara, Mughalpura, Lorry Adda and Multan Road (especially Mor Samanabad) were the worst areas where wardens frequently skip duty for various reasons, including their obsession with mobile phone.

Muhammad Amjad of Baghbanpura is of the view hat he hardly sees any warden regulating and clearing traffic congestions at three bridges -- Lal Pull, Tajpura and Fatehgarh on Canal Road, around schools closure timing. They were mostly seen issuing fine tickets to violators, he added.

He said mostly wardens were witnessed standing in groups, chatting and some of them using their mobile phones on Jail Road in peak traffic hours.

A warden said they were not depositing their mobile phones with traffic officers and that only used them in case of “emergency calls” while standing away from the duty point when signals were working.

He said vigilance teams though checked their arrival timings and absence from duty points on a regular basis, they were not asked whether they were following the new directive pertaining to mobile phone depositing.

He said similar orders issued in the past had been causing problems, especially for the wardens who belonged to other districts and they were in majority. He, however, said the misuse of mobile phone needed to be checked.

The CTPL spokesman, quoting the CTO said only duty officers and sector in-charges were using mobile phones as part of their training for an upcoming e-ticketing project. He also claimed that vigilance teams were regularly checking wardens at their designated duty points for violations, if any.

Published in Dawn, December 7th, 2014