In February, more than 8,300 people were booked for driving on the wrong side of the road or driving into no-entry zones.
The traffic cops’ campaign got a shot-in-the-arm after seriousness of the offence was raised by none other than state director general of police Pravin Dixit at a recent event in the city.
Dixit directed policemen all over the state to have zero-tolerance for those who break traffic rules. The TOI has been highlighting the issue since April 2015 when it first carried a series of stories under the head: ‘ Against The Flow’.
Dixit said, “People driving wrong side is the main reason for accidents that result in loss of human life. If people can spend thousands and lakhs of rupees in purchasing two-wheelers and four-wheelers, why do they think so much about saving a few ml of petrol? I have directed my men to have zero tolerance policy towards traffic violators. Already, thousands of cases are being made out on this count every day throughout the state. The drive will continue and people should cooperate.” The Delhi police have already moved a proposal seeking permission from a Supreme Court committee on road safety to seize driving licences for such violations. DGP Dixit welcomed the proposal and expressed whole-hearted support for the same. The same committee had earlier recommended seizing of licences for offences like speeding or jumping traffic signals. The suggestions have been implemented since January 1 and almost 50,000 licences have been seized in the last three months.
Police sources in Delhi say the new request has been made since driving the wrong way too classifies as dangerous driving.
If cleared, traffic cops would be empowered to seize the licences of offenders for the first offence for three months. The transport department might move for permanent cancellation if the nature of the offence is serious (TOI Delhi edition, March 02).
Deputy commissioner of police (traffic) Sarang Awad said, “It is a serious problem in Pune. The drivers are unwilling to go even a little extra for the sake of taking a legal turn. They will drive 100m and even more till they reach the first intersection to join the flow of traffic. There are some typical spots around the city where this is most commonly seen. The trend is common among bikers.” The cops are focussing on bikers, especially owners of power and expensive motorcycles.
Some of them intentionally modify silencers for the infamous ‘Indori Phataka’ sound. A total of 130 such defaulters were caught in February, up from a mere 18 held in January.
Awad said, “We keep getting complaints about noisy bikes on our Facebook page. People say it’s a nuisance. The noise really hurts the ear. Offenders are typically young boys who do it to make a style statement. My teams will catch them wherever they are spotted.” The drive against illegal parking too has been intensified in the past one month with cops catching 17,000 for parking in no-parking zones. Only 2,200odd were caught for the offence in January.
Source : TOI
