Delhi Traffic Police is finding it difficult to guard the batteries which power the traffic signals during power cut in the city. The thieves have been putting the drivers’ lives in danger by stealing these batteries and the power cut in summer is catalysing the problem.
Be it India Gate, ITO, Connaught Place, Kasturba Gandhi Marg, Chanakyapuri; the thieves have tried their hands almost every where in the city. Batteries at more than 150 traffic signals have been stolen in the past one year. The traffic department is unsatisfied with the rising number of battery thefts and the failure of the local police to curb such incidents.
During the survey, to know the reason behind non-functional signals, it was learnt that the batteries were stolen mostly from junctions and whenever there is a power cut, the signal stops functioning. There are around 890 traffic signals in the city.
“Due to staff crunch in the department, proper deployment of traffic cops could not be done at those junctions where batteries have been stolen thus motorists’ lives are put at risk,” a traffic cop requesting anonymity said.
It has been learnt by Millennium Post that three members of a gang have been arrested. However, the kingpin is still at large. During investigation it was learnt that they used to sell those batteries to the e-rickshaw drivers and scrap dealers.
“These batteries, costing Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000, are fitted to inverters installed at traffic signals as back up during power outages. Two batteries (12 V) weighing 25 kgs each are fitted in a traffic signal. And they are fixed in a way that it would take at least half-an-hour to remove them from their iron frame. But the gangs manage to steal the batteries with ease,” a traffic cop said.
Meanwhile, a senior official said: “To curb such incidents, we have started welding the batteries but the thieves still take them out without being caught by the cops patrolling at the nearby areas.”
He further added that the batteries of ITO traffic signals and India Gate (3 out of 4) have also been stolen where the cops are active 24X7 within 24 hours after reinstalling. Thus, these signals do not have signals.