Drive against violators of traffic rules set to begin in Karachi

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) Javed Ali Mehar, chief of the Karachi Traffic Police, has announced a campaign against motorcyclists not wearing helmets and warned rickshaw drivers of action over violations of a number of rules.

Talking to The News on Monday, DIG Mehar said that as he had planned phase-wise campaigns, he had issued strict directions to the senior superintendents of police of all the districts of the Traffic Police Karachi as well as to lower-level officials, including DSPs and section officers of the kiosk, to ensure full implementation of traffic laws.

Last week, he said, he had a meeting with members of the association of rickshaw drivers on numerous violations of rules by them in Karachi.

DIG Mehar told them that using more seats than allowed was not allowed and overcrowding was therefore also banned. Also, no passenger should travel with the driver, and any driver found violating this rule would be fined, added.

The traffic police chief further told the participants of the meeting that a number of rickshaws were operating without fitness certificates, and ignoring this requirement would land rickshaw operators in trouble. He said rickshaws without the fitness certificate and registration could be impounded as well.

He said that it had also been observed that many of the rickshaw operators were using LNG cylinders and also carrying petrol cans with them, which was a grave danger to the passengers. He told the association members to ensure that this dangerous practice was also ended.

DIG Mehar said that many rickshaws were operating with routes printed on the windscreen, a practice which was also illegal as the operators were granted permits for the entire city, not some designated routes, and this practice should also be stopped.

However, he added, a campaign in this regard had also been started. Earlier, he said, campaigns had been launched and motorists told through social media, newspapers and television channels to follow rules, including fastening the seatbelt and wearing helmets, but it seemed that many of the motorcyclists still did not adopt the practice of wearing helmets.

Now, he said, a campaign had been announced with the objective of implementing the helmet rule. He said the drive would be started in the coming days throughout Karachi. DIG Mehar said it was noticed that many motorbike riders were either injured or they died on roads, and investigations showed that they were not wearing helmets at the time of the accident. He said victims suffered head injuries due the slipping of their motorcycles.

He maintained that he had also planned a campaign to ensure strict implementation of traffic laws in the coming weeks, but it did not mean that they would stop their work of implementing laws for the time being. Action would continue and no relaxation would be given, he said.

Moreover, for traffic mess and other related issues, DIG Mehar said he had directed the district SSPs to compile a comprehensive report on traffic bottlenecks in the city and submit it to his office at the earliest so that coordination with the departments concerned could be started for action. He said whatever the jurisdiction of the traffic police, they had to sort this out first.

He added that officials would not allow any vehicle to park their vehicles on major thoroughfares, strictly implement the No-Parking Zone law and also consider as a priority the rule against violations of one- way law, which, he said, had become a regular practice by commuters nowadays. Moreover, the district SSPs and their subordinates had been directed to deploy extra personnel at choked points to avoid any gridlock during rush hours, he added.