Thiruvananthapuram: It has been three years this month since the Supreme Court had ruled that helmets be made mandatory for pillion riders. However, the mortality involving pillion riders remains high while the state police is yet to implement the law. Around 1,500 two-wheeler riders die in accidents in the state every year. The ruling came on November 1, 2014 and Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have started slapping fines on offenders. The fine was to be paid by either the rider or owner of the vehicle on which they were travelling.
“In almost all the accidents it’s the pillion rider who gets injured and killed as he/she does not have a good hold on the vehicle. In foreign countries, apart from helmets, pillion riders strap themselves to riders. Here, almost no pillion riders wear helmets,” said a traffic police official attached to North subdivision.
The city police had warned off actions against helmetless pillion riders in February this year but they were yet to reprimand people. The city police had sworn of strong action after a child was run over by a tipper truck at Pettah in November 2015.
Many two-wheeler riders approached by Deccan Chronicle claimed ignorance of the law. “The order said we need to create awareness before slapping fines. There was no time limit set to create awareness,” said a senior police official. According to Section 129 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, it is compulsory for everybody, including women and children, riding pillion, to wear helmets. Only people from the Sikh community are exempted from this rule.
23-year-old man killed in collision
A 23-year-old man who was riding pillion on his friend’s scooter died after the vehicle they were travelling on collided with a mini-lorry near Mangalapuram on Saturday. The deceased was identified as Sumesh of Attingal. He was travelling with his friend Subeesh from Attingal to Kazhakoottam when the bike lost balance and brushed against the truck. They fell on the road and Sumesh was hit by a mini-lorry and died on the spot. Subeesh is recuperating from his injuries at Thiruvananthapuram Government Medical College Hospital. The Mangalapuram police have registered a case.
