The city traffic police issued challans to 56,828 people in 2023 for violating traffic rules between Jan 1 and Dec 31. Traffic police recovered a fine of around INR 2.28 crore from these violators during the year. During the same period, the district court penalised 1,310 traffic rule violators and imposed a fine of another INR 1.40 crore on them.
Despite shelling out the hefty penalties, the city residents can be seen flouting the traffic rules at all major city roads. Two-wheeler riders without wearing helmets or four-wheeler drivers without seat belts can be normally spotted in the city. Senior traffic cops maintained that people should follow traffic rules for their own safety and the safety of others.
A senior traffic cop said that in almost all the fatal accidents involving two-wheeler riders reported in the city during 2023, it was found that the riders died of severe head injuries. These casualties could be avoided had they been wearing helmets. He said that by strictly enforcing the helmet rule, the focus of traffic police is not to collect fines but to bring about a behavioural change in people. “They should understand that their life is precious and just by wearing a helmet of prescribed standard, they can avoid the risk of severe head injury in case of a road accident to a large extent,” he said.
He said that people make a lot of excuses when they are caught at checkpoints violating the traffic rules. They take their life very casually without even caring that by violating the rules they not only risk their lives but the lives of other commuters also.
Another senior traffic cop said that it is a flaw of the system. There is no driving institute or a course which teaches driving before giving a driving license to people. “It is the selfishness of the existing system. People do not even know about simple road signages and rules. The parents simply purchase vehicles for their kids, and they drive them without any prior training on the roads thereby risking their lives. In absence of any prior training these kids accelerate their vehicles at high-speed flouting traffic rules and accidents happen. They talk on their mobile phones while driving without worrying about other people on the road,” he said.
Additional DCP (Traffic) Basant Kaul said that traffic police have a force of around 500 policemen, who conduct vehicle checking at more than 20 points across the city on a daily basis. Police have divided the city in four zones which are further divided into three sectors each. Traffic cops manage traffic in all major market areas, weekly haats, and major programmes organised in the city. Apart from that they are deployed in VVIP/VIP movement duties.
ACP (Traffic) Ajay Bajpai said that traffic/road safety is an issue of public awareness. Traffic police enforce traffic rules strictly, but people should understand that police cannot be omnipresent to check them. They cannot conduct checking round the clock. Traffic police spread awareness on the issue regularly to bring about a behavioural change in people. Police conducted a major awareness drive on traffic rules during the recently concluded ‘Road Safety Week’ to educate people on the issue. People should follow traffic rules for their own safety.
