Authorities and public discuss Gangtok’s traffic woes at ‘Khulla Manch’

ROPEWAY TO LIGHTEN BURDEN ON ROAD TRAFFIC IN THE OFFING, INFORMS MAYOR
GANGTOK, 02 May: ‘Khulla Manch’ - an open forum to debate on traffic related issues was held today at 11:30 AM in front of the District Control Room, MG Marg. The event was organized by the Press Club of Sikkim in collaboration with Sikkim Police, East District.
Answering the queries of the public was a panel consisting of the GMC Mayor, KN Topgay, GMC Deputy Mayor, Shakti Singh, Senior Superintendent of Police [East], Dr MS Tuli, SDPO [Gangtok] Ongmu Bhutia, DSP [Traffic], Sonam P Bhutia and Senior RTO, PK Basnett from the Motor Vehicle Department.
Addressing the gathering of people, GMC Mayor, KN Topgay congratulated the Press Club of Sikkim and the Sikkim Police, East District for taking such an initiative. This is a good initiative but for such events public participation is a must, he added.
Gangtok is facing a lot of traffic related problems and they need to be addressed and the public should come forward and speak on the problems faced by them, the Mayor said.
On the queries related to challaning of licenses and checking road worthy vehicles, the Senior RTO informed that this was necessary because of late many drivers had been caught with fake driving licenses which had made their way into the state from across the border, which needed to be dealt with immediately. While the checking of vehicles and registration certificates was also necessary in order to ascertain the road worthiness of the vehicle and whether the person driving the vehicle had renewed the necessary papers or not as ‘human life is most precious’, he added.
Answering the question on traffic lights put up at Hospital Point, Senior SP [East], Dr MS Tuli stated that although much money had been spent to put up the lights, their location is such that it had become nearly impossible for them to function properly. Moreover the traffic at Hospital Point is so heavy that timing of changing the lights was also a very big problem, he added.
Speaking on the parking of VIP and senior police officers’ vehicles in front of Tourism, the SSP [East] informed that there was no special permission given to the vehicles, but they were allowed to park just to drop or pick up the VIPs or to park during functions held at MG Marg. He also made a request to all such vehicles to avoid parking their vehicles there for other reasons.
The GMC Mayor, KN Topgay, speaking on the queries of traffic congestion and traffic jams stated that the number of vehicles in the Capital was increasing day-by-day and building of car parks was not the only option, but there was a need to work on reducing vehicle usage by people. According to a survey conducted recently it was found that around 450 vehicles are sold in a month from the showrooms in and around Gangtok, he added.
It is time we started to think 20 years ahead and not just two or three years, so the GMC in its next City Development Plan to be put up soon proposes to construct ropeways for commuting from Ranipool to Gangtok and its vicinities, he stated.
The forum was actively participated by citizens from all walks of society, where problems, grievances and suggestions related to traffic management and road safety measures of Gangtok were openly discussed. People had also sent their problems and suggestions through e-mail and SMS, which were also addressed during the event.