Taking your car to Kohima town on a busy day can turn out to be a day you want to forget. Often times, I experienced taking an unpleasant rounds through the circular road starting from Phulbari Junction and passing through Razhii point and Assam Rifles camp; all because there weren’t any space for parking my car. At times, I felt I may have looked like an amateur terrorist doing a recce for a possible strike right under the nose of our ‘Friend’s of the Hill People’.
My take is that Traffic jam and its associated problems in Kohima which invariably takes its toll on our economy, mental and physical health, Social and on many other aspects of our day to day life are mainly contributed by our own doing. We all love to live in palatial houses but hardly ever willing to sacrifice space for parking provisions. What baffles me is the sight of traffic jam caused by vehicles parked on the colony road (Even National Highway is not spared) on account of activities related to well-known educational institutions and thereby causing public nuisance. Churches are also equally guilty of creating nuisance on account of its congregation/churchgoers park their vehicles on the roadside. We love to take pride in constructing state of the art churches spending crores of money but fail miserably in budgeting on vehicular parking provision. Churches and Educational institutions as I know are the epitome of virtues such as Sacrifice, Love, Peace, Wisdom, Discipline, Responsibility, Understanding etc. However, by being the cause for Traffic Jam, road rage, provocation for utterance of expletives and causing untold misery and loss to the fellow being, it remains to be seen as to whether we as part of institutions and Churches can confidently stand the test of being the epitome of virtues that we all aspire to attain.
In stating thus; let us ponder for a moment and decide whether we should be remembered for being an agent of increasing the Happiness Index of the Citizens or as an agent responsible for bringing chaos and misery to our fellow citizens by our own greed.
Leaving aside the usual chaos being witnessed along colony roads, the traffic situation along the National Highway 29 (AH 1) is pathetic to say the least. The pitiable inter-state Tourist bus and Heavy trucks trying to manoeuver through the congested roads and business establishments extending its activities right into the National Highway is something which does not project a good image of ourselves. We may have to remind ourselves often that the road passing through Lerie, PR Hill, TCP gate and Naga Hospital is a National Highway and that certain minimum space is required for vehicles to traverse through it. The colourful footpath along the stretch is indeed an interesting sight with curves and bends and sudden gaps. The National Highway Division needs to be commended for its ingenuity in having to prepare a “Detailed Estimate” for a work such as this.
We cannot afford to stay complacent with the sight of upcoming Multi-level Car Parking facilities and Smart City projects. Before we could realise, the advent of rail connectivity and its resultant population influx could easily overwhelm Kohima city; unless the importance of vehicular parking provision is imbibed on every citizen and Government machinery as a shared responsibility.
Having stated thus, I would like to place before the esteemed readers, my sincere desire for change;
1. Let the concerned Departments/Agencies conduct detailed study and research on the impact of Traffic jam and its associated problems on our Economy, Health and Social matters. Findings on this may, in a way, help quantify the loss and ill effects to some extent and help us all appreciate its gravity in a more realistic way.
2. The Government of Nagaland make conscious effort to enact laws and bye laws which would empower the concerned agencies to act with the desired level of authority so that encroachments and unauthorised parking of vehicle be dealt with effectively and impartially. With the Government of Nagaland literally abiding by the Democratic ideals of “Government of the people, for the people and by the people”, decisions that calls for tough measures are hard to come by on its own.
Thus, it is pertinent that all stakeholders such as local based Civil Society organisations, Churches, Institutions and Business Associations are taken along; for without it, any initiative; though well intentioned is unlikely to see the light of the day.
I would like to conclude with a positive note by sharing with readers some of the good practices I have observed in recent days and also with the hope that more Good Practices are witnessed in the coming days;
• The Nagaland Police requires much applause for its policy of traffic management by utilising smart and efficient Women Traffic Police force. I am also of the conviction that amid traffic jam and chaos, their presence have also kept incidents like road rage, confrontation and use of abusive words under control to a large extent.
• The management of St. Mary’s Cathedral Hr. Secondary School, Lerie, Kohima have attended to the much needed importance of making provision for vehicular parking. This has not only ensured safety and security from accidents and injuries but have also brought much relief in terms of ease of traffic movement to the residents in the colony. I only wish that practices such as this is followed as a basic and mandatory requirement for all the institutions.
M. Kayina
Lerie Colony, Kohima.