Uttarakhand Police chief directs strict action to check road accidents

In a letter sent on Thursday, Abhinav Kumar asked district police chiefs to check licenses of bars and pubs operating until late at night and act against those drinking/serving liquor in public places

Uttarakhand Police chief Abhinav Kumar has directed district police chiefs to take strict action against drivers and owners of vehicles driving under the influence of alcohol and those speeding or overloading as part of a slew of measures to check road accidents amid a series of mishaps in the state.

There have been a series of accidents in the state. (PTI)

In a letter sent on Thursday, Kumar asked them to check licenses of bars and pubs operating until late at night and act against those creating a nuisance and drinking/serving liquor in public places. He wrote adequate CCTV cameras to be installed and maintained regularly. Kumar underlined the need for adequate signboards on the roads.

An overloaded bus carrying people returning to work after the Diwali break plunged into a gorge in Almora district’s Sult and left 38 people dead on November 4. On November 11, six people were killed after an SUV collided with a container truck in Dehradun.

Driving under the influence of alcohol, overloading, jumping red lights, driving by minors, drivers driving while using mobile phones have been found to be the main causes of road accidents.

Kumar wrote sufficient alcohol metres be made available to the traffic police. He said check posts/barriers should be put up to check drunken driving. Kumar said action should be taken under the Motor Vehicles Act and vehicles seized in case of drunk driving. He also directed the use of speedometer or radar gun, and action against overspeeding.

“If a passenger vehicle is found carrying more passengers than its capacity, action should be taken under Section 194 (1) of the Motor Vehicles Act. Similarly, if a goods vehicle is found to be overloaded/overloaded with passengers, action should be taken under Section 194 of the Motor Vehicles Act. If a minor is found driving a vehicle, action should be taken against his guardian/vehicle owner under Section 199A of the Motor Vehicles Act,” the letter said.