Controversial IPS officer Nazrul Islam, who had been on ‘compulsory waiting’ — a type of ‘punishment’ meted out to erring officers by the government — for the last month-and-a-half, was finally given orders to take over as ADG, traffic, West Bengal Police. Islam, who antagonised the ruling Left Front government on several occasions, was director, prosecution, when he was ‘banished’. Meanwhile, Islam turned down an offer from Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee to join her team as her private secretary. Now, the doughty officer has jumped headlong into his new post. He has written to DGP Bhupinder Singh about the series of measures he plans to take to tackle reckless driving, while on his directive, the police launched a drive at Diamond Harbour Road to check for speed governors in vehicles.

HC ‘drive’ gets road rage for CPM

While Minister for Transport Subhas Chakrabarty as well as Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen have said that the state government will abide by an order barring vehicles older than 15 years from plying the roads, it is not winning them any fans. Besides, there is much scepticism about how 2,557 buses, 5,000 taxis and 573 minibuses can be shunted off the roads, as owners of most of the vehicles owe allegiance to CITU, the labour wing of the CPM. Signs of resistance are clear. On Monday, CITU staged a road blockade at Nagerbazar near Dum Dum airport during morning peak hours, throwing traffic in the northern fringe of the city out of gear. People are also wondering about the fate of the city's transportation system.

... contd.