Indian city uses ‘scarecrow-like’ mannequins to help police traffic

‘People behave differently when there is a policeman present,’ says top officer

Traffic mannequins in Bangalore, India (@devdesure/Express Bengaluru)

Police in an Indian city have deployed mannequins dressed as traffic officers in a bid to tame unruly motorists.

The scarecrow-like decoys are dressed in full uniform – black boots, brown trousers, khaki shirt and cap – along with a high-visibility vest and dust mask.

Officers said they were moved around Bangalore frequently to trick drivers.

BR Ravikante Gowda, a senior traffic officer, told the BBC: “The idea of placing these mannequins at a different location every day is because people behave differently when there is a policeman present at the junction. When he is not there, their behaviour is different.”

Sometimes a real officer will be stationed where a mannequin had been the day before, another constable told the broadcaster.

But citizens and social media users appeared to be sceptical of the scheme.

“How long does he think these dummies on the road will last? Who is paying for this? Which driver on the road will obey a dummy?” asked one.

The mannequins were just “sort of like an elaborate scarecrow”, said another.

At least one Twitter user suggested that the mannequins’ pale colouring rendered their accurate uniforms redundant.

But city officials hope that most drivers will notice only the uniforms and not the dummy officers’ faces, according to a report in the Bangalore Mirror.

The scheme is in its trial phase, the paper reported.