Kerala State Human Rights Commission chairman Antony Dominic has issued a directive barring the unscientific use of ropes or wires to divert traffic.
Dominic directed the State Police Chief to refrain from tying ropes across roads for diverting vehicular flow.
Instead, diversion sign boards must be erected well in advance and traffic police personnel must be positioned at such points. Barricades and reflective sign boards that could be seen from a distance must be used to streamline traffic, the commission said.
The prevalent practice of tying ropes to divert traffic was taken up for consideration while examining an accident that occurred six years ago when S. Anil Radhakrishnan, City Editor, The Hindu, had sustained injuries after a rope tied across the road cut into his neck while he was on his way to the Assembly on his two-wheeler on July 12, 2012. Radhakrishnan had to undergo treatment for a long period following the incident.
The commission registered a suo motu case on the basis of a newspaper report on the incident and entrusted the District Police Chief (Thiruvananthapuram City) with investigating the incident.
The police informed the commission that similar arrangements were made to divert vehicular flow during Assembly sessions. , especially during day time.
Besides, traffic police personnel were also deployed to handle traffic in such areas.
After examining the report, the commission directed the State Police Chief to issue instructions to all police stations to discontinue the practice.
More recently, Reny Robinson, 21, was killed on August 17 when his neck got entangled in a rope tied across the road near Manmohan Bungalow at Kowdiar here. The City police had made the arrangement to restrict traffic on the road while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was staying at Raj Bhavan.
Reny’s neck was partially severed in the incident. He died at a hospital.