Students managing traffic on Cox's Bazar roads

COX'S BAZAR, Aug 07: Students are voluntarily discharging traffic control duty at the important points of roads and highways in the district in absence of the police.

Public life in the district and elsewhere across the country is yet to return to normal after the downfall of the Sheikh Hasina-led regime amid a huge mass uprising.

Fear and nightmare still continue to haunt people everywhere though the recent student has ended with the toppling of the Awami League government amid the resignation of Sheikh Hasina as prime minister.

Currently, there are no police or law enforcement personnel on security duty in Cox's Bazar district and upazila headquarters like elsewhere across the country. Likewise, there is no police personnel on traffic control duty on the roads. There are signs of violence taking place various places.

On Wednesday (August 7), students and ordinary people were seen controlling traffic on the roads of Ramu, Chakaria, Ukhia and Teknaf upazilas, apart from Kalatali Dolphin Cross, Central Bus Terminal, Linkrod, Laldighipar and Bazarghata.

Students were working relentlessly to solve traffic jam on the roads.

Human hauler TomTom, CNG-run auto-rickshaws, rickshaws and private cars were in abundance but domestic and long distance bus services were very limited. There was less crowd on the streets and in the markets. However, traffic jam was seen in some places.

A pedestrian named Chowdhury said, "Students are performing duties on road traffic management. They are doing a thousand times better job than the police. If the traffic police were on duty, the bus terminal, Link Road and Kalatali would have to suffer traffic jam while there is no traffic jam on the road for two days."

"Political leaders and law enforcement agencies can learn from students how to run the country," he added. Rafiq Uddin, a CNG driver of the bus terminal, said, "There is no toll payment anywhere on the road for two days because the road is managed by the golden boys of my country."

"Other times, gangs used to collect a daily fee of Tk 20 from each CNG-run vehicle at this bus terminal. I pray for the students as because of them the country has become independent again," he added.

Teacher Shamsul Islam said if the students return to educational institutions, they would not be able to stay on the roads but they showed how to run the country as well as traffic properly.

TomTom car driver Shafiq Ahmed said, "No one had to pay any toll on the road for two days. If you drive on the road, you have to pay only Tk70-80 per day. Now relief has returned to our life."

Cox's Bazar Government College student Tarekul Islam said, "We are trying to control everything. But soon everything will be normal. Let the traffic police do their work. It is expected that they will play a more responsible role than before. Along with traffic control, there is also a call not to waste state resources. Along with this, the students are also urging everyone to work so that no one in the neighborhood is attacked."

A police officer requesting not to be named said, "Most of the police members including senior officers were loyal to the Sheikh Hasina government. They have worked as per the government's demand. As a result, if the situation does not become completely normal, lives of junior officers like us will be in danger."

Police sources said that the policemen did not go to the streets in fear of attack.

There was no such instruction from their officials. Many of the officials are in hiding. As a result, a kind of chaos is going on within the police.

All the policemen of the district have gone back to the barracks fearing violence.

As there is no policeman on traffic control duly in the city, students and people associated with the student movement are working as volunteers in the field to manage traffic.

While visiting Cox's Bazar Sadar Model Police Station and District Traffic Police Office, there was found not a single police car as the police station was damaged and all the cars were vandalised.

During the mayhem, miscreants took away numerous vehicles and goods from the Traffic Police Office and Sadar Police Station.

Traffic police boxes located at Kalatali Dolphin Junction, Bus Terminal and Link Road were vandalized and set on fire.

Additional Superintendent of Police of Cox's Bazar Rafiqul Islam said, "Sadar Police Station and District Traffic Office were extensively vandalised and set on fire. All goods and various vehicles seized by the police were taken away."

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