Unlike previous years, where stunt biking and hooliganism had become the norms on Shab-e-Barat, this year the Delhi Police’s security arrangements and outreach seem to have paid off. No stunts were reported till 11-30 p.m. on Friday
Around the same time last year, bikers were performing dangerous stunts around India Gate and efforts to control them resulted in massive traffic jams at many places.
Slow traffic movement was reported on Friday night, but the chaos was visibly less than last year.
To deter the members of the procession from performing stunts, barricades were placed at many places across the Capital. The police said slowing the bikers down was their focus because driving at high speed is a prerequisite to perform several stunts. Motor-cyclists were stopped at several stretches, sometimes twice on the same road.
Other measures such as installation of CCTV cameras and usage of hand-held ones were also taken up. For instance, on Oberoi Flyover on Dr. Zakir Husain Marg, pictures of bikers were clicked and their details noted down to ensure that they are tracked if found violating traffic norms later.
Checks were also carried out at other areas such as ITO near the Delhi Police Headquarters. A little ahead eastwards, barricades had been placed on both sides of the Yamuna Bridge. However, the check was more stringent on the side used by the commuters from Trans-Yamuna areas to come towards Central and New Delhi.
Even as they refrained from stunts, other violations such as not wearing helmets or more than two persons riding the same motor-bike were aplenty.
