Daily Times

KARACHI: The campaign against violation of safety helmet rule is in full swing as the traffic police has issued more than 45,000 challans and impounded over 9,000 motorcycles during the course of campaign.

The data shared by the police shows that during the last nine days 148 people were killed in road accidents out of which 87 were motorcycles without helmet while 204 sustained injuries.

The traffic police launched the campaign on last Thursday apparently for creating awareness among the motorcyclists about the benefits of safety helmets in the backdrop of increasing deaths in road accidents.

The newly appointed Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Imran Yaqoob Minhas, has ordered the crackdown against people who do not follow the helmet rule.

Despite being the law most of the motorcyclists do not follow the safety helmet rules. However, the police insist to strictly implement the law. “People will be sent to jail if they resist the implementation of law by not wearing helmets”, police officials warned.

DIG Traffic informed that during the campaign Rs 6.8 million have been collected by imposing fine on those violating rules. Besides 9616 motorbikes were impounded.

The citizen as always view the campaign with suspicion and term it an excuse to collect money from the poor, as the motorcycle is called poor man’s ride.

Mian Usman, a motorcyclist, views the campaigns as useless without creating awareness among youngsters. The aim of the campaign is to collect money. “The only difference is that earlier policeman used to stuff their own pocket now they are stuffing government accounts with this money”, he viewed.

One more motorcyclist who paid his fine for not wearing helmet said happily that I am satisfied that amount is going in government account not in policeman’s pocket. “Although it is for our safety and we must wear it but for short journey it is not easy to carry helmet so I often forget but I like the way how policeman were talking without misbehaving and very politely made computerized fine slip”, he stated.

One police constable complained that some of the people try to bribe us to let them go. “But this time the trick is not going to work”, he insisted

Published in Daily Times, September 23^rd 2017.