The streetsmart constable

By: Eshwar S

A cop wills a highway back to life

Ever seen a traffic policeman fix roads? Byatarayanapura traffic constable Ramesh P did just that when he noticed traffic piling up on Mysore Road opposite Gopalan Arcade on Tuesday morning.

Ramesh noticed that a huge crater on the road had been filled with two feet of rainwater, courtesy Monday night’s downpour, which meant that two-wheelers, autorickshaws, and even cars could not navigate through the mire. The busy highway had narrowed down to a lane on the nearly 30-foot long stretch where water had accumulated.

Ramesh did some quick thinking, and decided that since waterlogging was causing the traffic jam, investing time to fix it was worth the effort. He began flagging down tractors that were passing by, carrying loads of construction debris and earth. Ramesh asked the drivers to unload the material into the waterlogged area so as to pave a temporary path that would allow buses and other heavy vehicles to move and help ease the traffic jam.

”I began duty at 7 am and immediately noticed traffic jam on both sides of the road due to last night’s rains filling up the potholes. I decided to act quickly to decongest traffic, and stopped nearly a dozen tractors and asked them to unload the debris they were carrying to quickly fill up the craters. I began this operation around 9:30 am and it went on till the end of my shift at 2:30 pm. By the end of it, heavy vehicles like buses and lorries were able to move on the left side of the road and the pace of traffic had quickened. So I felt satisfied at having done my job,” said Ramesh. We second that. Well done, Ramesh.

See how the situation unfurled in real-time with this slideshow: Above & beyond the call of duty