Editor,
Through this column, I wish to draw the kind attention of the Public Works Department (PWD) to the need to widen roads in the core areas of Shillong. Movement of all types of automobiles are now being permitted by the Traffic Police for the most part of the day and night. This inhibits the movement of pedestrians. Even the footpaths are clogged by hawkers. With the ever increasing numbers of private cars in the city, most owners who don’t find parking space have to use the main roads to park their cars in some of the busiest areas of the city and mostly during peak hours. This leads to traffic congestion.
Though there is hope that once the Shillong By-pass becomes operational, a huge volume of traffic passing through the city would be diverted. But who will this benefit? I am a resident of Laitumkhrah which is the education hub of the city. This area has a huge volume of traffic daily as parents drop their children to school and people shop at the Laitumkhrah market. Many drivers deliberately overlook the traffic norms and cause accidents. Drivers of two wheelers flout the traffic rules with impunity and speed up to beat the traffic snarls in the area.
I wish to suggest that the stretch of road from Dhankheti point to Fire Brigade point via Laitumkhrah area should have road bumps or rumble strips, at least after every 50 metres in order to control the motor bikers from speeding in congested areas like Laitumkhrah.
Yours etc.
P B Das,
Shillong-3
Efficient traffic police
Editor,
It’s a joy to ride in the city for last few days as I could hardly find any traffic jam specially on the Shillong-Jowai Road at least from Anjalee petrol pump to Nongthymai Bus Stop. The roads are swarming with Police personnel trying their level best to ease the traffic, by any means they could, thereby proving that the Shillong Traffic Branch is also very efficient in maintaning the traffic if they wish to. Generally it takes 15 – 20 minutes on the two wheeler for me to reach my work place but miraculously it took not more than 8 minutes on Friday. I wondered why this is not the situation everyday. Only later when I saw some convoy of VIPs zooming towards the Assembly at Rilbong and the police people standing at attention making way for the convoy that I realised the reason for4 the efficiency. I earnestly request all my fellow riders and drivers to follow traffic signals and most importantly to follow the lane driving and a special request to the Officers and VIP’s to educate their drivers to follow the traffic rules as expected from sane and civilized people.
Yours etc.,
Bidyut Das,
Shillong -4
Unemployment vis-à-vis deficit budget
Editor,
In a deficit budget state like ours, the chances of employment generation are very grim. And as the system of education gets better, the literacy percentage of the state also goes up. As a result the number of job – seekers go sky – rocketing. Secondly, the delay in holding of competitive examinations by the Meghalaya Public Service Commission (MPSC) also is another factor which adds to the problem. For instance,competitive examination takes place only after a gap of one to two years from the last date of submission of application forms as fixed by the Commission. The inability of the government to bridge this gap between the job-seekers and employment generation as well as the failure of the MPSC to hold competitive examinations in time has created problems for job seekers as they become over-aged. Hence, it is time for the government to give a serious thought to this prevailing problem. My suggestion is that the government should increase the maximum entry age limit to 33 years for general candidates and 38 years for schedules castes / scheduled tribes and other backward class candidates.
Yours etc.,
A. Dkhar
Shillong -3