Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, March 1: Drivers are throwing caution to the winds on the Patia-Cuttack Road at night, fearing the robbers who target passing vehicles on the stretch more than the penalties that police would impose on them for rash driving.
“I spotted a few men by the roadside. They tried to stop my car, but I sped away,” said S Moharana, a Cuttack resident.
Residents of nearby villages claim that such incidents are common in the area. They attribute this to the meagre police presence and the absence of light on the stretch. “It is easy for the criminals to target the stretch between Patia and Cuttack at night as there is no police presence and the road also does not have lights,” said a resident of Barang.
“Though senior police officers have been asked to patrol the area, police personnel hardly come here after dark,” said a shopkeeper in the area.
There is an urgent need for strengthening the patrolling in the area, said retired IPS officer KM Deo. “The patrolling is not robust and because of this crimes are taking place frequently in the outskirts of the twin cities,” he said.
Twin city police commissioner Rajendra Prasad Sharma admitted that the patrolling needs to be strengthened. “We will enhance the patrolling in and around the twin cities,” he said during the annual crime review meeting at the commissionerate police headquarters’ here.
