U’khand acquires modern equipment for better traffic management

Next time if you see a strange looking machine repairing a pothole within a few minutes in Dehradun, don’t be surprised as it may be a pothole patching machine the traffic police department will acquire soon.

It is among other state-of-the-art equipment of the department has been acquiring for better traffic management.

The department has already acquired 17 camera fitted alcometers, 136 e-challan machines, six interceptor vehicles, 13 speed-radar cameras, red light violation detectors cameras and 12 cranes.

Equipment like pothole patching machine, divider making machine, solar powered traffic signals and smart life poles to alert drivers on blind curves on hill roads are under process to be acquired, an official said.

The department believes that the new equipment would enable them to manage the traffic in a better way and deter commuters from violating traffic rules.

“Among the acquired equipment, the RLVD cameras are going to be installed in five major crossings in Dehradun. The cameras, which are under trial, would catch the traffic rule violators and generate challans for the violations,” said deputy inspector general (traffic) Kewal Khurana.

“Apart from this, training would be given to police personnel to use the e-challan machines which would be linked with the control room,” said Khurana.

Asked, Khurana said equipment acquired cost them about ₹3 crore. “Apart from this, the soon to be acquired machinery would be part of the second phase of procurements worth ₹1 crore which has already been approved but yet to be allocated for each one of them,” he said.

“Among the machinery to be procured in the next phase, the pothole patching machine which would be acquired for Dehradun, would be a very useful one. It would enable the department to repair small potholes in minutes,” Khurana said.

“The machine, a single-man operated one, would cost about ₹10 lakh. It would be able to repair about 100 potholes at a complete estimated cost of ₹50,000.”

One just need to put construction material in these machines and then give it directions through a joystick, he said.

Another police official of the traffic department criticised the public works department (PWD) for its negligence. “Repairing of potholes is the work of the PWD, but it is negligent enough to do that,” he said on condition of anonymity.