Mid-Day: Mumbai: Wednesday, December 27, 2017.
RTI Query By
Mid-Day Reveals Shocking 700 Per Cent Increase In Collection Of Fines By The
Traffic Dept For Using Mobile Phones When Driving, In Last 3 Years
While the
Mumbai Traffic Police may have left no stone unturned warning motorists about
the risks of using mobile phones when at the wheel, a Right To Information
(RTI) query, that was filed by this newspaper, has revealed that the amount of
fines that the police have collected for the breach has increased seven-fold in
just three years.
Between
January and September this year, the traffic police department collected a
total of R30 lakh as fine, which is 700 per cent more than R3.78 lakh they
collected in 2015.
The trend is
disturbing, because the Traffic Police has been investing a lot of manpower and
money on social media campaigns and public hoardings to caution motorists
against speaking on the phone while driving. Currently, as per Section 250 A
MMVR/177 of the Motor Vehicle Act, the traffic police slap a measly fine of
R200 for talking on the phone.
According to
the RTI query filed by this newspaper, in 2015, the traffic police collected
around R3.78 lakh as fine. If one divides this figure with the fine amount of
R200, an approximate number of 1,890 people appear to have been penalised
during that year. The fine collection snowballed to R11.72 lakh a year later in
2016. This year, however, it peaked by 700 per cent with R30 lakh being
collected from nearly 15,300 motorists.
Road safety
experts have expressed concern over this development. Ashutosh Atre from Road
Safe Foundation said, "The rate at which the number of people being fined
for talking on the phone while driving is increasing, is a cause for worry.
Despite all the efforts, I think that the government hasn’t been able to create
effective awareness campaigns. Also, authorities should come up with more
stringent punishments to prevent people from breaking the law."
A senior
traffic police official, who did not wish to be named, admitted that there has
been a dramatic increase in the fines collected from people using mobile phones
when driving. "We have been regularly appealing to motorists against risking
their lives and that of others. Our traffic police constables ensure that
offenders do not go scot-free."
When
contacted, Amitesh Kumar, joint commissioner of police (traffic) said he would
only comment after looking into the case.
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