As the procession made its way in the Shera Wala Gate area, several heated arguments between various commuters due to minor accidents broke out. “My car was damaged when a scooter collided with it and I will now have to shell out thousands of rupees to get it repaired,” complained an angry car driver.

The traffic lights near Punjabi University remain non-functional throughout the year due to reasons unknown. Same is the case with the traffic lights near Sherawala Gate, Thapar College Roundabout, Fountain Chowk and various other crossroads across the city.

The Traffic police admits that sometimes the signals are switched off due to sudden power failure and this often leads to accidents, some of which also prove fatal. Though no data is available with the police, officers say that in the absence of the traffic lights, motorists try to cross these junctions ignoring traffic rules and safety norms.

The shortage of staff also makes it difficult for the traffic police to post personnel at every crossing whenever there is a power failure. “We cannot rush our staff to every nook and corner of the city. We can only request the Municipal Corporation to manage the lights better as they are the ones responsible for their upkeep,” said a traffic policeman.

To tide over the problem, the police is now contemplating installing power backup system at traffic junctions. “Apart from ensuring uninterrupted power supply, the proposed system will help reduce the number of accidents,” said officials.

“Whenever there is a power failure, long queues can be seen stuck at intersections for hours, with the traffic police hardly bothering to clear the jams,” said a bank employee. “A ten-minute drive takes us more than half-an-hour to reach our destination,” he rued.