Colour-coded stickers must to ply within Mumbai: Top cop

To check on motorists taking to roads for no valid reasons or trivial work and causing traffic jams, Mumbai police commissioner (CP) Hemant Nagrale on Saturday announced self colour coding of vehicles plying in Mumbai

To check on motorists taking to roads for no valid reasons or trivial work and causing traffic jams, Mumbai police commissioner (CP) Hemant Nagrale on Saturday announced self colour coding of vehicles plying in Mumbai. The police chief appealed to the citizens to follow the rule, which would come in force from Sunday 7am and will remain effective till May 1, 7am.

HT Image

The order came after the entry-exit points at Dahisar, Mulund and Vashi, and some other parts of the city saw long traffic jams because of police nakabandi and check on on those flouting lockdown rules. This caused interruptions in movements of ambulances and other essential service vehicles. Following this, the top brass of the police department decided to impose some restrictions on the movement of non-essential vehicles.

Nagrale through a video message announced mandatory colour coding for vehicles in Mumbai to limit the vehicle flow.

He said that red stickers would be a must for vehicles of the medical fraternity people like doctors, paramedics ambulance, and also for vehicles supplying medicines and medical and testing equipment.

Essential service vehicles like that of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), electricity suppliers, telephone exchanges, press, and all those services which treated as essential services will be required to carry yellow stickers for easy identification.

Green stickers would be required for the vehicles carrying vegetables, fruits, grocery, dairy products, bakery products, etc.

All motorists (including the two wheelers) who fall under these categories have to put respective stickers on their vehicles. The stickers have to be pasted on the front and rear side of the vehicle and must be properly visible. They should be round and of a minimum of six inches in diameter. The police will also provide these stickers to the eligible motorists at the toll plazas and check posts free of cost, the commissioner said in his message.

“The stickers would facilitate easy movement of essential service vehicles. If anyone tries to misuse the stickers or paste on their vehicle knowing that their vehicle doesn’t fall under the eligible categories, then those motorists would be prosecuted under relevant legal provisions,” Nagrale said.

The decision aims to restrict the vehicular movement of unwanted vehicles during the lockdown and ensure no traffic jams at the entry-exit points and toll nakas for uninterrupted movement of ambulances, vehicles for doctors and nursing staffs.

“Those vehicles which are coming to the city from other districts and states, and falls under the allowed categories would be given stickers by the police. The police will allow them entry into the city while rest will be barred from entering the city without any valid reasons,” said deputy commissioner of police (operation) Chaitanya Siriprolu, who is also the spokesperson for Mumbai Police.

The deputy commissioner of police also added that the said order of colour coding has been issued under section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code.