Few want to man roads

Few want to man roads
Citizens Shy Away From Volunteering As Traffic Wardens
R Krishnakumar | TNN

Bangalore: The change you want to see is still waiting for you. The concept of civilian traffic wardens, that was explored to ease the workload of traffic constables, has been around for 23 years in Bangalore. But the spunk with which citizens slam traffic management is not reflected in the number of people who join to make the difference, according to volunteers. The Traffic Warden Organization (TWO), a voluntary organization set up with support from Bangalore traffic police, has 339 registered members. But according to chief wardens, regulars form only a small share. “They join with a lot of enthusiasm but most lose interest soon. Only about 100 wardens can be classified as regular,’’ M T Naik, chief traffic warden (CTW) and former DCP (traffic), said.
TWO has six divisions — East, West, North, South, Central and Adugodi — with deputy CTWs in charge of each division. A combination of factors leads wardens to give up soon. For one, the difficulty in balancing careers with physical work on the roads. Wardens come from diverse backgrounds: from students to teachers to doctors to software engineers. Naik said the initial enthusiasm is intact and pointed out that TWO hosted more than 600 candidates during the latest interview. The rate of retention, still, is low. M Nambiar, deputy CTW (East), has worked for about 18 years with civilian wardens. According to him, retaining the right people is also critical. “We have cut down on the numbers after realizing that most wardens were not performing. There are also the ones who join in just to obtain police-certified ID cards. We have received complaints that they later abuse the cards,’’ Nambiar said. Chief wardens have come across candidates who expect salaries and get put off after realizing they have to get even the uniforms stitched.
According to K H Srinivas, deputy CTW (Central), non-performance has led to the ouster of many wardens. The programmes designed to generate more awareness, though, are still on. And the commuters’ endorsement of the idea? “Feedback has always been good because wardens are also trained on behaviour with road-users,’’ says Srinivas.
To join as a traffic warden, call 22942923.
WHAT MAKES A
WARDEN
In 2004, the minimum qualification of the warden was brought down from graduation to PUC pass/equivalent. Wardens man traffic at some critical junctions, including GPO and Minsk Square, Bhashyam Circle and Commercial Street-Dickenson Road junction. While operating independently, wardens are also called in to help traffic constables during peak hours. Junctions manned by wardens are decided upon based on many factors, including location of the wardens’ residence/ workplace. They have the right to issue challans to traffic rule violators. Under the Catch Them Young (CTY) programme, they also organize awareness campaigns in schools. The training they undergo covers, apart from signalling basics, behaviour tips and the Motor Vehicle Act. Wardens meet once a month for a parade. A warden who puts in four hours a week on the road makes the grade as “fairly regular’’.

“There are about 35,000 intersections in the city, of which 5,000 are critical. Six hundred constables man signals. If there are more traffic wardens, these constables could be made use of elsewhere.’’
M T NAIK, CHIEF TRAFFIC
WARDEN AND FORMER DCP (TRAFFIC)