City police begin drive against underage drivers

The police, on Wednesday, initiated a drive against underage drivers, starting at Jai Hind College and St Xavier’s College in south Mumbai.

The police, on Wednesday, initiated a drive against underage drivers, starting at Jai Hind College and St Xavier’s College in south Mumbai.

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The drive came following the accident near Churchgate on July 18 in which a 17-year-old student from Jai Hind College, driving a Honda City car without a licence, knocked down a 74-year-old man near the CCI circle.

As part of the drive, the police not only charged underage drivers, they also booked those not wearing helmets and not carrying a proper licence. DCP (Zone 1) Dr Ravindra Shisve, who initiated the drive, said, “Primarily the drive was to check if there were any students under the age of 18 who had vehicles.”

At Jai Hind College, the police found six youngsters below the age of 18 who had come to college on motorbikes. “We called the parents of these youngsters and asked them how they allowed their underage children to ride bikes,” Shisve said.

Apart from this, there were 59 cases wherein students who had motorbikes were found not wearing helmets nor with valid licences. In these cases, the traffic police booked them under sections of the Motor Vehicle act and fined them.

Shisve said they have also asked the management of these colleges to keep an eye on underage youngsters driving/riding vehicles. “As part of the drive, we will be going to different colleges to curb the menace,” Shishve said.