Ludhiana, Sept. 30 -- The Ludhiana Police Lines, long resembling a graveyard of rusting vehicles, began clearing out on Tuesday as nearly 350 impounded vehicles were auctioned by the police commissionerate. Scrap dealers started removing the vehicles as they towed them away, officials said.

For over six years, battered trucks, dented cars, abandoned scooters and autorickshaws with rust-eaten frames had cluttered the premises - silent relics of traffic violations and criminal cases. Time had reduced many of them into heaps of scrap, giving the Police Lines the appearance of a dumping yard. The clear-out, officials said, marks the beginning of a larger drive.

Police commissioner Swapan Sharma called the move "long overdue." "These vehicle...