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Lucknow: 182 fined for flouting helmet, seat belt rule
UP Government’s order to observe Wednesdays as ‘helmet and seat belt day’.
UP Government’s order to observe Wednesdays as ‘helmet and seat belt day’, a move aimed at creating awareness and minimising crash-related injuries and deaths, seems to be a non starter.
On the very first day of its implementation, active checking drives were seen at only a few crossings. In other locations, traffic cops appeared least interested in ensuring that the commuters were complying with the order.
Besides, at some places where the checking drive was on, the traffic cops themselves were spotted flouting norms. Of the total 72 crossings, mere 4 crossings—Hazratganj, 1090, Polytechnic and Mahanagar witnessed the checking drive carried out jointly by the traffic and transport department. A total of 182 daily commuters were fined, 106 for not wearing helmets and 76 for not wearing seat belt.
“We carried out drive on several prime locations in the city and fined around 182 daily commuters for flouting traffic norms,” said Nidisha Singh, additional regional transport officer (ARTO) enforcement.
Singh said the drive would continue on every Wednesday and commuters without helmets and seat belts would be fined.
The busy Hazratganj remained the focal point where the helmet and seat belt awareness drive was carried out extensively during the noon hours. Cops fined a number of commuters riding without wearing helmets, while some were booked as their pillion rider was without helmet. yet some others were let off with the warning. Majority of those fined was youths and college goers.
“Our aim behind the drive is to create awareness among the masses and to minimise the increasing road
fatalities,” said a traffic cop who was a part of the team carrying out the drive on the busy crossing. But here, the drive seemed only for the commoners and not for the cops who were spotted flouting the traffic norms blatantly in presence of those carrying out the helmet and seat belt drive.
Polytechnic crossing was another place where the drive was seen. Some commuters called it a ‘useless attempt to bring down the road fatalities graph’. “How is it going to help? What about faulty roads, poor traffic management, almost no streetlights, poor traffic sense and above all no traffic plan? Seat belts and wearing helmets come at a later stage, the government should streamline the traffic first,” said Prabhakar Shukla, a daily commuter.
On Sunday, the Uttar Pradesh transport department had announced to observe Wednesdays as helmet and seat belt day across the state from this week onwards. The transport department and the home department took the decision jointly and issued directions to the officials concerned for compliance. The attempt was made in order to bring down road fatalities, the rate of which is quite high in Uttar Pradesh.
