Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Nearly 24 lakh violators of traffic rules in the state have paid almost Rs 100 crore as fine to the police in last one-and-a-half years in the state. Helmet-less two-wheeler riders were major traffic rule violators, with 15 lakh of them coughing up Rs 44 crore from January 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024, in the state.
However, if you thought that collecting huge amounts as fines has made the roads safer, you are wrong. In 2023, deaths-on-roads averaged 37 a day. In the same period, 4,890 two-wheeler riders lost life as they were not wearing helmets.
Over-speeding is responsible for most road deaths. In all, 10,360 people died in road accidents in the state last year due to over-speeding. The police penalised 56,366 vehicles for over-speeding in 2023 and recovered over Rs 2 crore from them. This year till June, 9,040 challans were issued for over-speeding and fine of over Rs 90 lakh was imposed.
As many as 1,812 road accident deaths in 2023 were attributable to car drivers not wearing seat belts. In the same year, the police penalised 1.72 lakh drivers for not wearing seat belts and collected an amount of Rs 8.66 crore from them as fine.
In the next six months (Jan-June 2024) alone, 1.5 lakh drivers were caught over-speeding and were made to shell out Rs. 92.74 lakh. Chatting on mobile while driving is common. In 2023, 5,389 people were caught using mobile phones while driving and they paid a penalty of Rs 32.28 lakh.
In last six months, the police penalised 819 people for the same reason. In 2023, 1,432 passenger vehicles were penalised for overload and a fine of Rs 10.7 lakh was imposed on them. This year till June, 2,939 vehicles were fined Rs 13.24 lakh.
Drunk driving is another reason for road accidents. In 2023, 11,968 drunk drivers were penalised and they paid Rs 2.33 crore as fine. Till June this year, police penalised 3,630 drivers and collected Rs 46.27 lakh from them. Jumping red light also causes road mishaps. In 2023, 73,152 drivers were penalised for jumping red light and police collected 3.70 crore as fine.
What to avoid
ADG, PTRI, Anil Kumar Gupta told Free Press that using helmets and seat belts, avoiding over speeding, drunk driving, use of mobile phones while driving would reduce road accidents and fatalities . In 2023, 55,327 road accidents claimed 13,798 lives.
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