The last day of the odd-even scheme kept Delhi Police and volunteers on their toes as hundreds were strategically deployed across central Delhi to ensure that the restrictions were not violated.
Traffic police teams were posted at almost every intersection near ITO. The road outside ITO Metro station had witnessed the first prosecution under the initiative. On January 1, a motorist was challaned at 8.33 am.
Motorists also took the rule seriously as no challans were issued near Delhi Police Headquarters. However, there was no visible change in the volume of traffic.
Noida resident Manish Aggarwal told Deccan Herald that he has been following the rule while traveling to his office in Connaught Place. “I have an odd numbered Honda City. During the even days, I prefer traveling by Delhi Metro,” Manish said.
Nitesh Sharma, a resident of Pahar Ganj, said that he would not support the idea of continuing the campaign.
“I would prefer using the car due to my job with HDFC Bank. I have to travel across the capital. In these days, I had to take taxi and autos which is a costly affair,” Nitesh added. Police personnel said that they were partial during the rush hour, but had strict orders to take action against even numbered cars on Friday.
“It is not possible to act during rush hour as our main job is traffic management,” said a traffic constable posted at ITO. They are careful before stopping a car.
“We first see the number, then check whether the driver is a woman or a man and finally look for the CNG sticker,” the constable added.
Not many challans were issued in the area. “Most of the challans are issued near residential areas like Laxmi Nagar and Bengali Market,” another traffic police officer said.
There were 15 volunteers on the four-way intersection which reported to a in-charge, a ‘senior warden’.
“Our shift begins at 7 am. We then split into groups sent to one of the four points at the intersection,” said Anil, a volunteer.
Published 16 January 2016, 01:49 IST