949 vehicles fined in 4 hours for defective number plates

Errant Delhi drivers shelled out close to a whopping R1 lakh as fine for driving vehicles affixed with defective number plates in just four hours on Monday.

Errant Delhi drivers shelled out close to a whopping Rs 1 lakh as fine for driving vehicles affixed with defective number plates in just four hours on Monday.

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Satyendra Garg, joint commissioner of police (traffic) said the R100 penalty inched towards the phenomenal amount between 11am and 4pm during a dedicated, city-wide checking against vehicles with number plates bearing anything extra except the vehicle's registration number. "While driving a vehicle which proclaims a political party's slogan, and oft-used words and symbols such as 'Government of India' or 'Press' brings it under the defective number plate category, in many cases, it is outright deceptive and a criminal offence," Garg said.

In the mere four hour duration, initiated an hour after the end of the morning peak traffic timing and concluded an hour before the evening rush hour, the traffic police prosecuted more than 900 commuters. A majority of them, sources said, were in south Delhi. "In effect, in just four hours during which 949 challans for defective number plates were doled out, we were able to add Rs 94,900 to the central exchequer," said a senior police officer requesting anonymity.