Jamshedpur Diwali: Special traffic arrangements for Bistupur and Sakchi market

Jamshedpur, Oct 12: Special traffic police arrangements will be made for the Bistupur and Sakchi market, keeping the vehicular congestion in mind during the festive occasion of Dhanteras and Diwali.

During the special traffic arrangement entry of heavy vehicles and empty auto-rickshaw will be restricted so as to facilitate the private cars and two wheelers to move freely in the road leading to the twin marketplaces.

Revealing about the move, a traffic police official said that being auspicious `Dhantares’, there will be a tremendous crowd of customers at the shops, especially at jewelry, utensils and electronic shops.

“As a large number of people tend to come to the markets, especially at Bistupur by riding four-wheelers, very little space remains left for the pedestrians and also the two-wheelers.  For ensuring a smooth shopping by the Diwali revelers, we will restrict the entry of heavy vehicles into Bistupur market and also the entry of empty auto-rickshaws both in Bistupur and Sakchi markets so that traffic congestion does not take place,” he said.

The official said that to restrict the entry of auto-rickshaws and heavy vehicles, three traffic cops will be deployed at each of the entry points in Sakchi and Bistupur market place.  He said the cops will also help in removing congestion besides preventing the commercial vehicles from entering into the market.

Starting from Dhanteras to Diwali, the marketplaces in Sakchi and Bistupur get unusually crowded.  On Dhanteras day, shops remain open till late in the night and traffic snarls become a frequent phenomena at the crossing due to the huge influx of vehicles, causing immense inconvenience to the people.

“Every year I make it a point to buy something special on Dhanteras day by visiting Bistupur market.  I enjoy buying something special like gold jewelry during this auspicious day.  But congestion at the marketplace makes me sickened,” said a resident of Kagalnagar in Sonari.

Another customer, Ankit Jha said he had a bitter experience due to traffic congestion while shopping on Dhanteras day in Bistupur market last year.

“I had ventured  into the congested Bistupur market by driving my brand new car which I had bought just two hours ago.  But after remaining trapped in a huge traffic congestion, the car had scratches on it.  What was most shocking was that I was watching my car being rubbed and dashed by two-wheelers due to the congestion, and I was helplessly watching it,” said Jha, a software engineer posted at Bangalore said, adding that this time he would park his vehicle away from the marketplace. 

Notably, there are three parking lots in the walking distance from the Bistupur market, but the owners of cars and SUV tend to enter into the marketplace by riding, causing the market to get further congested.