A city wearing gloves

The first five days of this month forced me to return to a topic on which I have written several times.

The reason is that things are now becoming almost unbearable and innocent lives that could be saved are being wasted. Why the first five days? That is because it is a record of sorts rather a tragic milestone as far as traffic accidents are concerned.

Believe it or not but according to rescue services personnel 14 people lost their lives in traffic accidents in Karachi in the first five days of this month.

The most tragic was the death of a man and his wife who were hit by a runaway dumper truck whose brakes had failed and the driver lost total control of his vehicle. Any traffic accident that involves loss of life is tragic but an accident in which in a few seconds both husband and wife lose their lives is not just tragic; it is a monumental tragedy as a happy household loses both its pillars and one wonders how those left behind can continue to survive and lead a normal life.

In most households in this bustling city of more than 18 million people it is the head of the family who is the provider for the entire household and is assisted in this task by his or her partner.

When both are wiped out by the carelessness of a driver and his superior who ignored the deteriorating condition of their vehicle and continued to ply it irrespective of the dangers it posed to the ordinary people on the road the house structure practically collapses, creating other tragedies which will never be reported but will have lasting impact on society.

While any serious action is awaited there is a lot of reaction on these tragedies with press conferences by superior police officers and announcement of steps to curb such tragic accidents in future.

Again, there is a debate whether heavy vehicles should be allowed during day-time on the congested city streets and then there is a crackdown of sorts on those driving without a valid licence.

We have seen all these activities before in same or larger measure but to no avail as we all know. What needs to be done is something really concrete. One step that cries out for action is the strict physical fitness of all vehicles and specially vehicles like dumper trucks. Yes in the recent wave of actions there is also the inspection of vehicle fitness certificates. This is a good move but only if these certificates are issued after thorough and unbiased inspection which clearly is not happening right now.

The dumper truck which killed the couple on motorcycle had a brake failure and the vehicle went out of control, hitting the couple. Brake failures do not happen overnight as we all know. There are noises that indicate your brake pads are in a state of decay than comes the stage when you have to pump several times before there is any reaction from your brakes.

During all these stages the obvious is ignored by drivers and tragedies are created. This I am sure is not going unnoticed by our friends in the traffic police who do not need a detailed technical examination to realize that the vehicle they had stopped has some problem. Yes they have the fitness certificate but how it was obtained and if there has been any actual physical examination are questions that require plausible answers.

One thing that also requires to be probed is why we have two police forces. One only for traffic control and the other for rest of offences and maintaining law and order. In most countries of the world it is just one police force. For an erring driver the very sight of a police officer is a big deterrent.

Any police officer can pull a vehicle to the side and inspect and impose fine or even impound. I remember that in Canada in the seventies I was driving with a loose bumper that made a lot of noise as I had banged it with a wall while reversing.

I was pulled over by a cop who did not allow me to proceed any further in that condition but ordered a tow truck and a taxi for me. I had to take it directly to a garage and not bring it on road till the problem was fixed. We require such vigilance and strict enforcement to harness this out of control spree of life taking accidents.

Just as I was finishing this article another tragic news. More dumper deaths as another out of control dumper truck claimed three lives in Korangi. Victims asking as in a couplet by late poet Mustafa Zaidi, “maiñ kis ke haath pe apna lahu talash karun? tamam shahr ne pahne hue haiñ dastane [On whose hand do I find traces of my blood? The entire city is wearing gloves]”.

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