Goa Police to launch special drive to curb traffic violations at night

Goa has been witnessing a steep rise in accidents, majorly due to drunk driving and over speeding, especially in the late hours of the night. Accidents are on the rise, resulting in the deaths of many individuals. To prevent this from escalating any further, the Goa traffic cell, and the district police, will jointly undertake a special night drive, targeting traffic violators and drunk drivers with strict penalties.

Reportedly, most cases of drunk driving, and over speeding were logged during nighttime. As per the Goa road accident statistics from 2018, the state reported a total of 1580 accidents between 6:00 PM and 6:00 AM. In these, total of 117 people, including women and children, died.

The offence of drunken driving is punishable with imprisonment for a term of six months or with a fine of ₹10,000 or both. Effective policing requires interaction with people, and in a bid to achieve that, Goa police have urged all the citizens, particularly young people, to drive or ride safely and responsibly.

Addressing traffic violations in Goa, the state police also ordered a detainment of parents or guardians, in case a minor is found driving in violation of the Motor Vehicle (MV) Rules. After a recent accident on the Zuari bridge which claimed four lives, citizens took to blaming the authorities for improper road infrastructure in the state.

In response to claims made by the people, Director General of Police Jaspal Singh said that, "Citizens should follow traffic rules to avoid such incidents and not blame the condition of the roads for violations. When people are issued a driving license, they get it under certain conditions that they will follow traffic rules. Enforcement can be only there to change the behaviour of the people. You cannot put a law enforcement officer on every inch of the road.”