Police for strict enforcement of odd-even rule

KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 29

Traffic police have intensified action against the vehicles violating the odd-even rule, which is being enforced in Kathmandu valley.

Chief district officers of Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Lalitpur had lifted the complete lockdown on September 10, allowing businesses to operate on particular days. But the government had decided to continue the odd-even rule for vehicles.

As the number of vehicles on roads has started growing exponentially, traffic police have stepped up their action against the rule violators.

Superintendent of Police Rameshwar Prasad Yadav of Metropolitan Traffic Division, Singha Durbar, said as of 5:00pm today, as many as 1,595 vehicles were held across the valley. Of those held, 1,290 were two-wheelers and 305 were four-wheelers. Some of those vehicles were held until 8:00pm, according to traffic police.

Traffic police have increased the number of check posts to enforce the rule. Today there were 41 check posts, mostly around and inside the ring-road.

Many people have complained about the abrupt action of the traffic police. A passerby caught around Kausaltar area of Bhaktapur said, “I had thought the odd-even rule was no more and had been riding all day for the last one week. But all of a sudden my motorbike was held without any information.”

Feature image: File

A version of this article appears in e-paper on September 30, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.