Commuters in Pulwama face hardships due to frequent traffic jam

PULWAMA — The mismanagement of traffic and callous approach of officials has left Pulwama town in a complete mess as the town remains clogged with traffic for hours.

People blamed the lack of parking space, mismanagement of traffic, lack of footpaths, and non-compliance with traffic rules by motorists. Many like Zakir Hussain said people illegally park vehicles on the roadside without caring about others, leading to frequent jams.

A local said traffic jams are mainly witnessed from Murran Chowk to Newa sumo stand and on the same route District Hospital Pulwama is located, causing immense hardship to patients and attendants to reach their destinations. He said that vendors and shopkeepers are occupying the main roads due to which pedestrians are forced to walk on the roads and it takes half an hour to cover just a few hundred meters.

A group of employees said the persistent traffic jams have put their jobs at stake as they fail to reach their respective offices in time. They said that the authorities have not carried out widening of roads and it becomes a challenge for vehicles to navigate through narrow roads.

Locals said that the issue was brought to the notice of concerned authorities several times to no avail.

An official of the Municipal Committee said that they are working along with other departments to act against drivers for parking vehicles on roadsides.