The long-familiar Dhaka city looked unknown to its dwellers since August 5 when students of educational institutions starting from middle school to university took up responsibility for traffic management. The students, who spearheaded a fierce anti-government movement that culminated in the ouster of the Awami League government, took on traffic management in the capital and other major cities and towns with the cops leaving their assignments amid attacks on police establishments in retaliation for the brutality against students during the movement. Since then, they had been performing the task single-handedly until police personnel in the traffic department resumed their work after a full-week break. The students have not yet withdrawn themselves from the voluntary work. But now they are not in the lead, they are just assisting the cops. Many people are comparing the one-week traffic management under students with that in other times. How was really the traffic management during the period?
City dwellers had many new experiences at that time as the students, who were referred to as 'cute cops' by many for their being too young and naive, tried to enforce the traffic rules following the copybook. Vehicles were made to stop and take to the routes and lanes that they were supposed to. This was the first time pedestrians were not allowed to jaywalk and bikers to occupy footpaths. The results were clearly evident; traffic order prevailed across the cities. But it was not easy for them to make city people, who are used to breaking traffic rules, comply with those as the students have no legal authority to prosecute or fine anyone and police-like behaviour - verbal abuse, bribe seeking - are alien to them. Many pedestrians, bikers or transport workers were seen trying to ignore their instructions but finally submitted to their determination.
The young generation has proved wrong the long-held public notion that they are too self-centred to take up challenging tasks in the greater interest of the nation. They have not only succeeded to oust a regime that opposition political parties have failed to, but also taken up many other tasks voluntarily to contribute to the benefit of the nation. Traffic management is one of the many responsibilities.
Anyway, it will be no good idea to keep students in traffic management for a long period. They have their own business, studies that is, to which they need to go back as soon as possible to make up for the losses they sustained due to the movement. They need to be withdrawn promptly for some other reasons too. Students have some precious things - naivety and innocence - that need to be maintained as much as we can. There were media reports that transport workers offered bribes to some students when they stopped their vehicles for breaking the rules. It is obvious that lawbreakers and bribe seekers will keep trying to influence them if they are kept in traffic control for long.
It is the decision of the authorities when the students will be withdrawn from traffic control, but it will be a great contribution to traffic management if the examples they have set are followed. Students have done so many things in traffic management that we expect not from them, but from the traffic police department, which is responsible for maintaining order on the street.
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