Imphal, January 10: Despite tremendous dependence on vehicles for speedy execution of its assignment, Central Motor Transport Works (CMTW) department of Manipur Police Department has been virtually reduced to dumping site for condemned vehicles, said a reliable source.

Actually set up for expeditious repairing of police vehicles to cater to the daunting challenge of insurgency problems with a Superintendent of Police to look into the affairs the Police Department have been facing untold hardship not only on the monetary front but also in waste of time which the State cops could hardly afford, said the source.

The 56 personnel assigned to the CMTW other than utilization in repairing of officer's vehicles have been rendered useless due to non-provision of motor parts and other requisite equipment, added the source informing that vehicles used by the personnel are normally repaired at private workshops and sometimes at their personal expenses.

In some cases vehicles have been laying at the CMTW that presently exceeds 100 vehicles, for more than three years.

Not only has the Government ceased fund provision to the CMTW but also slashed previously provided assistance to district police stations constraining the concerned stations to repair vehicles at their own account.

A former DGP once envisaged disbanding the central workshop and posting personnel attached to the CMTW to open similar police workshop units at district headquarters under supervision of concerned SPs, disclosed the source adding the initiatives have been given a quite burial.

The prevailing situation has even encouraged some individuals in connivance with scrupulous elements within the department to resort to questionable conduct like below-standard supply of tyres with instances of frequent punctures giving headaches to the security forces, disclosed the source citing example of commando units of a particular district recording the highest case of tyre defects.

When the tyres were checked at a private workshop the mechanics pointed to sub- standard ply-rating of the tyres.

Following the police modernisation programme under the Union Home Ministry an outside firm is engaged in supplying the tyres that is presently stored at the CMTW, further elaborated the source.

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