Social Distancing Goes For A Toss In Chennai As Commuters Clog Up For E-Registration Checks

On Tuesday, motorists were agitated and flouted lockdown restrictions as the police stopped them to check e-registration passes

Traffic congestion due to e-registration checking at Anna Salai in Chennai on Tuesday. (Image: Twitter)

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu government implemented a lockdown to curb the spread of Covid but ironically there has been traffic congestion at the heart of the city (Anna Salai) as the commuters created chaos due to the lack of E-Registration passes.

To travel in the city, people are supposed to have e-registration passes. Checkpoints are introduced In 13 places in Chennai, which fall under 12 police circles. To restrict public movement in the city, barricades have been and when people cross the barricade they should be able to show the registration passes.

Over 135 police stations have been divided into sectors. As many as 348 sectors were cordoned off with barricades on the roads to prevent the movement of the public. Arrangements have been made for the public to buy vegetables and essentials within the sector where they live.

On Tuesday morning, motorists were agitated and flouted lockdown restrictions as the police stopped them to check e-registration passes. There have been intensive vehicle checking happened on the borders of police jurisdictions. A senior police official told The Hindu, "Only 50% of motorists are found to have the e-registration passes. We were ordered to stop all the vehicles and verify the records of motorists. Most of the motorists on the roads claim that they were moving for emergency purposes such as a hospital or related work. We also found most of the vehicles on roads now are from hospitals or other emergency services.”

153 checking points have been introduced in all the important places and junctions of the city. Besides, senior officials have been monitoring the situation.