It has been experienced by the cricket fans that they encounter massive problems while rushing to the Eden Gardens as well as while returning home after a match. With a target to find a solution to these issues, the city police commissioner Surajit Kar Purkayastha recently approached IIM Calcutta to carry out a two-day survey during Indian Premier League matches scheduled on Thursday and Friday to handle the problem and then arrive at a solution. The data collected will be subsequently analyzed at IIMC and the results will be submitted to KP within a fortnight.
The questionnaire was distributed by Kolkata Police at all the 17 gates at the Eden Gardens among spectators who had arrived to watch the IPL playoff match between Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians on Friday. Questionnaires will also be distributed during the final match on Sunday.
The survey will be conducted by three faculty members of IIM-C. They are the institute director Saibal Chattopadhyay, a statistician Rahul Mukherjee and Uttam Sarkar of the computer science department. The aim of the survey is to study the crowd dispersal based on the inputs provided by the spectators.
The form handed out to the cricket fans had questions like the mode of transport they used to travel to and from the stadium, their destination after the match, if they were forced to walk or take alternative modes of transport because of unavailability of their preferred mode of transport. Purkayastha clarified that the data will assist police to arrange better security measures and transport. The police chief was addressing at a programme on 'Kolkata and its challenges' organized by the Rotary Club and Concern for Kolkata on Friday.
In order to inspect the configuration of the survey, Chattopadhyay himself dropped at the Eden Gardens on Thursday night. The institute director explained that they will sample answers given to them by 7,000 visitors spread over the two days to arrive at results for directional concentration. They will apply statistical and deductive methods to sort out the percentage of spectators dispersing in different directions and how they could benefit from enhanced security and transportation measures. He added that for example in case they find that more than 30 % visitors would benefit if the metro could be run after midnight on match days or special bus services should run from Eden Gardens to Sealdah and Howrah, or a more convenient car parking system in the vicinity of the field could be organized, they will suggest the same to the police.
The suggestions provided will be forwarded to the Kolkata Police. They will in turn, coordinate with the state transport department to implement the suggestions. The police commissioner declared that if they are able to find the directional concentration, they will not only be able to enhance security but also modes of travel on these special nights.
Just ask any cricket fan about his/her plight while traveling to and from the match venue along with family and friends. One can hear tales of woes. The issues range from cars parked couple of kilometers away to absence of public transport to reach home safely. The media was buzzing with the reports regarding the plight faced by the cricket fans following conclusion of matches which compelled the Kolkata Police to think of a solution.
