Lawlessness on city roads has become a norm on tricity roads these days. The number of incidents of misbehaviour on the roads has increased in the last two years with around 30 cases being reported in which young motorists either misbehaved with cops or with other motorists, after their vehicle was signaled to stop or intercepted or there is some contact with the vehicles.
Wednesday’s incident in which five youngsters lost their cool after their vehicle was hit by a Bolero pick-up van is just one of countless such examples. Chandigarh police sources claim that they keep receiving similar complaints and in most cases, the issue ends in a compromise. Another major cause of increasing number of road rage cases is over parking.
Cops claim that they are at the receiving end in a number of cases. DSP (crime) Jagbir Singh said: “We have seen incidents of road rage involving residents and cops. The latter have been victims of road rage, especially at nakas. The problem has become really severe in the last three years with youngsters zipping on city roads and mixing drinking with driving.”
UT IGP RP Upadhyaya said: “It is unfortunate that in a planned city like Chandigarh where the residents are largely educated, incidents of unwanted behaviour leading to law and order problem are reported. Road rage is of two kinds. It is between two citizens and sometimes between citizens and cops. Whenever there are incidents of road rage, we tend to be strict. In the bonnet ride incident involving the cop, we have imposed Section 307 (attempt to murder) and in the Wednesday incident of youngsters snatching a Bolero after a minor accident, a case of dacoity has been registered.”
{{/usCountry}}UT IGP RP Upadhyaya said: “It is unfortunate that in a planned city like Chandigarh where the residents are largely educated, incidents of unwanted behaviour leading to law and order problem are reported. Road rage is of two kinds. It is between two citizens and sometimes between citizens and cops. Whenever there are incidents of road rage, we tend to be strict. In the bonnet ride incident involving the cop, we have imposed Section 307 (attempt to murder) and in the Wednesday incident of youngsters snatching a Bolero after a minor accident, a case of dacoity has been registered.”
{{/usCountry}}There is a sociological angle to the issue too. Prof KK Bansal from PU’s sociology department says: “The change in lifestyle where an individual is always running against time has resulted in decrease in patience. Youngsters nowadays have exposure of all sorts and moral values are dying a slow death.”