THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the launch of Operation Safety, four times more traffic offences are being registered in the city as police spares no women and elderly offenders even. As per the traffic police officials, over 900 people were booked for various offences, mostly for riding without a helmet, on Tuesday. Daily around 3,000 people are being checked. Around 1,600 people were booked in last two days.
“Women riders have the habit of tucking helmet under the scooter seats. On the other hand, youngsters ride with the helmet strapped on to the hand or with their pillion rider. All barring hospital emergency cases are being booked. Driving while talking on the mobile phone is taken seriously,” said a senior traffic official attached to Traffic (North).
Daily around 70 motorists are being booked for driving while talking on mobile phones. Checking has been intensified between 6.30 pm and 9.30 pm when most rash driving incidents occur. Individual officers have been directed to restrain from booking offenders and instead groups have been deployed at random locations.
“Deployment is not around usual checking points. No chasing will be done, but interceptions will be done. All the activities are being recorded in camcorders to ensure that officials or offenders do not misbehave,” said an official. “Generally, people barring senior government officials and a section of members of the press are falling into line,” he added. Though the operation was expected to go on for one month, it will continue until Commissioner Sparjan Kumar asks to stop.
