Hyderabad: A black Skoda Laura with a fancy number plate bearing the letters “GOUD” was spotted near the Chief Minister’s Camp Office in Begumpet on Thursday morning. As per the Motor Vehicles Act, number plates are not permitted to have fancy lettering, names, pictures, or any other artwork, as they could prove misleading in hit-and-run cases.
Pictures of the vehicle went viral on social media on Thursday. Traffic cops say that such vehicles if encountered, will be detained.
Reacting to images of the car with the improper number plate, J. Panduranga Naik, the Joint Commissioner of Transport, said, “It is a violation of the number plate rules and we will take action against such vehicles. Generally, the traffic police enforce the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act on such vehicles encountered in Hyderabad city.”
A.V. Ranganath, the DCP (Traffic), south zone, said, “If such vehicles are caught, they will be detained and fined. The vehicle owners will have to undergo counselling at traffic training institutes in Hyderabad, without which their vehicles will not be released. As of now, there are no penalty points imposed for improper plates, but we will try to include this violation.”
Experts in road safety say that this is a major issue and that the conduction of special drives once in a while is not enough.
Vinod K. Kanumula, a road safety expert, says, “The use of these kinds of number plates is not permitted under the Motor Vehicles Act. They can be misleading in hit-and-run cases. Apart from this number plate, there are many other types of fancy number plates seen in Telangana and other states.”
He adds that this is a major issue which is largely ignored. “The conduction of special drives once in a while is not enough to put an end to the use of fancy and illegal number plates. Cars with these kinds of number plates may be involved in fatal road accidents. The matter has to be dealt with in a strict manner by transport and traffic officials.”
