RULE of law and maintaining discipline should be among the top priorities so that we may have peace of mind. A nation’s behaviour can be judged from traffic discipline. Unfortunately, in the case of Pakistan, the word ‘discipline’ has simply vanished.

Lane discipline on the roads is non-existent. Driving on Karachi roads is like playing a violent video game. You never know what will happen next. Breaking the one-way rule is a norm, and violating traffic signals is commonplace. Yet, the ‘efficient’ traffic police officials are seen on the roads facilitating these violators.

I have spoken to numerous traffic police constables about their lack of action, and their answer almost always has been that they had orders from their superiors not to issue challan for these ‘minor’ offences. One wonders what the logic is behind this.

Yousuf Ahmad
Karachi

Published in Dawn, January 1st, 2025