Delhi Traffic Police on September 14 launched a drive to intensify road safety awareness in the national capital. As a step to push people to wear rear seat belts, Delhi traffic police issued a challan to a total of 17 people with a penalty of Rs 1,000. On the first day of the special drive, the traffic police conducted checks on Barakhamba Road near Connaught Place in central Delhi to ensure compliance.
The drive comes after former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry (54) died in a road accident in Maharashtra’s Palghar district on September 4. According to police, Mistry, who was sitting in the rear, was not wearing a seatbelt.
“A total of 17 court challans were issued during the drive from 11 am to 1 pm under Section 194B (use of safety belts and the seating of children) of the Motor Vehicles Act,” a senior police officer said. The offenders were fined Rs 1,000 each, the police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi Traffic) Aalap Patel said, “The legal provisions were already there but it has become a topic of discussion after the recent incident (Mistry’s death).”
“The Delhi Traffic Police is already running a campaign to spread public awareness regarding (the importance of) wearing seat belts. We are also taking legal action,” the officer said. Last week, the Delhi Police took to Twitter to urge citizens, not to over-speed and always wear seat belts.
