Ayub Park Check Post

One wonders if the JCP (Joint Police and Army Check Post) on GT Road near Ayub Park for checking incoming traffic from Rawat serves any useful purpose or has apprehended any miscreants till date except for causing  untold misery and agony daily to the hundreds of commuters from both DHAs and Bahria town going to Pindi/Islamabad. All sorts of vehicles including Emergency Vehicle (ambulances etc.) are held up here forming almost half a mile long bumper to bumper eight deep queues that makes it almost impossible for the poor soldier to check the boot of any car  and he can cast only  a cursory glance at the occupants inside the car, especially during the dark hours of the night.  An interesting fact is that before this check post there are quite a few alternate routes available for anyone to by pass  it; such as going through Bahria Town Phase IV,  High Court road, Kotha Kalan and Attock oil refinery etc..

Apart from causing great misery to the commuters daily, what the authorities don’t realise is that they are offering a very lucrative target to the terrorists. At any given time there are scores and scores of vehicles – cars, wagons and even oil tankers – stuck jam packed bumper to bumper at the check point or moving literally at snail’s pace.  What if one of these very vehicles is a car bomb and the suicidal terrorist blows it up it in the midst of this huge assembly of vehicles, none of which can move either forward or backwards, making them all explode in turn? And God forbid if there is an oil tanker around, one can imagine the inferno it would cause for the travelers and those around who would not have any chance to survive whatsoever!

The best course of action would be to shift this check post to a an open and wide road space area near Rawat on GT Road to avoid congestion as well deny the alternate routes to the miscreants.

Col. Riaz Jafri (Retd)