The Traffic Police of Lahore have erected barricades on all major roads as a measure to ensure security in the metropolitan city. Such security barricades are understandable in hotels and office complexes; but are quite a nuisance on main roads. One can see many lines of vehicles jumbling up at such barricades as only one vehicle can pass through at a time. To negotiate these barricades, one has to take two to three sharp zig-zag turns at very slow speed. This causes a lot of delay for the vehicles coming behind and sometimes the line of vehicles behind can stretch up to a kilometre or so. I have to pass through at least three such barriers twice or thrice daily in the cantonment area. All these barricades are manned by civil and Military Police. I do not think that such barriers serve the purpose of arresting the prospective terrorists or criminals but definitely serve to harass peace loving and law-abiding citizens. -LT COL (Retd) MASOOD AKHTAR JAVED, via e-mail, March 12.