Police, civic depts should work in tandem to address traffic, infra issues: CP Sajjanar

Hyderabad: Hyderabad City Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar has underscored, at a crucial ‘Convergence Meeting’ here,that public services can be delivered with maximum efficiency only when the police and the municipal departments work in complete synergy.

The meeting was held on Thursday to streamline traffic regulation, tackle monsoon challenges, and enhance public safety. Officials from GHMC, HYDRAA, Water Works, Electricity Department and the Traffic Police wings of Hyderabad, Rachakonda and Cyberabad took part in the meeting. The meeting focused on traffic management, monsoon preparedness, infrastructure realignment, and parking solutions.

Decisions were made to expedite road repairs and complete pending junction improvement works to reduce congestion at major intersections. Upgrading the drainage system to prevent water stagnation also figured. Additionally, proposals were discussed to relocate bus stops to wider road segments, remove Sulabh Complexes obstructing arterial roads, and construct Foot Over Bridges (FOBs) for safe pedestrian crossing. It was decided to establish more multi-level parking facilities and launch a Multi-level Parking App to streamline city parking.

During the meeting, GHMC Commissioner RV Karnan called for seamless coordination among the Water Board, Electricity Dept, and local bodies.

He announced the delegation of administrative powers and budgets to field-level officers in his department to accelerate project execution. He expressed his confidence that 80% of urban issues could be resolved through regular monthly field inspections.

Furthermore, he stated that problems would be categorised into short-term (15 days), medium-term (1-3 months), and long-term (above 3 months) for quick resolution. He revealed that the ‘Multi-level Parking App’ would be launched shortly to help citizens locate parking spots easily.

AV Ranganath, Commissioner of HYDRAA, stated that areas prone to waterlogging were being closely monitored for permanent solutions and confirmed that measures were being taken to remove encroachments on footpaths.

D Joel Davis, Joint CP, Traffic, Hyderabad presented a comprehensive analysis of city traffic woes and proposed the following: relocating bus stands to wider areas to prevent bottlenecks, shifting Sulabhcomplexes built on main roads to suitable alternative locations, constructing FoBs and installing railings at Puranapul, Bahadurpura, MJ Market, Masab Tank, Begumpet and other places to prevent hazardous jaywalking, establishing dedicated parking zones for autos, especially near Osmania Hospital and other congested areas, to curb haphazard parking.

GajaraoBhupal, Joint CP, Traffic, Cyberabad suggested a ‘single agency’ approach in which the same contractor handles both road excavation and immediate patchwork to prevent delays caused by multi-stage tendering.

Ashok Reddy MD, Water Works stated that measures had been initiated to further develop the city's sewerage and drainage systems. He assured full departmental cooperation, observing that inter-departmental unity was essential for solving traffic and pedestrian issues.