Now, VIPs won't hold up traffic

This might bring some relief to commuters who have often been at the receiving end due to movement of dignitaries and other VVIPs. For the first time ahead of the Commonwealth Games, Delhi Police commissioner Y S Dadwal is said to have asked the special commissioner (traffic) to try and "categorize" VVIPs and VIPs so that the importance meted out to them can be "graded". Since such a move is likely to have wide political ramifications, senior officials refused to come on record. "The process has begun. However, it will take some time before we can work out all the modalities on ground," said a senior traffic cop at the police headquarters.

According to sources, it has been decided that the three most important political figures in the country — Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, President Pratibha Patil and Congress president Sonia Gandhi — will be allowed a thoroughfare, free of all traffic "hazards". "Traffic will be regulated along the entire route. The regulations will be put in place much before their respective cavalcades reach a particular point," said a senior officer. The police said the plan will be executed before the Commonwealth Games.

For all others, including cabinet ministers, CM Sheila Dikshit and senior Supreme Court judges, monitoring will be done at a different level. "We will continue to regulate the traffic, but it will be done at a more local level thus reducing the speed of some of these officials. However, VIPs will not get stuck in any traffic jam," said the official. In a first, the traffic cops have been advised not to allow even senior police officers — not even the commissioner — to pass through. "They will have to wait for the signal to turn green," added the official.

The officials said the idea was mooted after allegations that a VVIP's movement around Chandigarh's PGI hospital led to the death of a patient. "Delhi has huge volumes of traffic and holding up movement during peak hours leads to congestion. We began preparations and the field trials in the Shanti Van area have been on since Tuesday. It will become more challenging once we move towards the traffic jam-prone areas in New Delhi and South Delhi.

Also, preparing the list is a Herculian task, given its political implications," added the officer. Officials claimed such a plan was integral in ensuring the success of dedicated corridors meant for Commonwealth Games officials and athletes.