PESHAWAR, Aug 18: The traffic police inspectors have been facing hardship in complying with the new orders asking them to do duty long hours, policemen interviewed by Dawn said.

“The directives issued by the SP traffic a month ago, instructing his subordinates to perform 14-hour duty at a stretch, has sent many policemen to the city’s hospitals, because of the scorching heat on the roads,” said an inspector.

According to him, they were forced to perform duties on the roads from 7am to 9pm, which was almost impossible.

Interestingly, the SP has also ordered that nobody will take weekly off or leave barring medical one. Hospitals’ record shows that 15 policemen, including constables, head constables, assistant sub-inspectors and sub-inspectors took medical leave, after fainting while on duty. They were taken to hospitals due to severe dehydration.

“We can’t leave our duty places empty, unlike the ordinary police who find opportunities of taking rest during their duty hours,” said a traffic sub-inspector.

According to him, the 205 staffers of the traffic branch of police department were required to manage 80 points in the city, besides patrolling on the sprawling city.

The duty of the traffic police becomes harder and harder in the summer season as they are supposed to stand alert in the sizzling heat. Many of the traffic signals are out of order, which further aggravate the problem, who then need to supervise these points also.

If the out-of-order traffic signals are repaired, it would help a great deal and the policemen patrolling these points can be diverted to other places, said an inspector.

They also perform VIP duties which affect the overall performance of the force. They run from pillar to post to cover the points left by their colleagues deputed on special duty.

Some of the blue-eyed people in the traffic police get themselves transferred to the police stations at the onset of the summer season to escape the wrath of heat.

“A traffic constable fainted near University Town some 10 days ago, who was rushed to the Emergency Ward of the nearby Khyber Teaching Hospital, where he was drip-fed,” said an inspector.

He said the traffic police remain on the road unprotected from the blazing sun.

In some places, the cigarette-manufacturing companies have erected umbrellas, but they are also in bad shape.

The officers do not have any problem, because they do not move in the sun and most of the time sit in their air-conditioned offices, he said.