Don’t stop, rules must be followed

The seizure of vehicles and the cancellation of driving licenses as well as vehicle registration certificates in different parts of the Valley are giving an impression that the government has woken up from the deep slumber to act against the overloading and other traffic norms violations that led to the fatal road accidents. In Srinagar, the officials in the Regional Transport Office (RTO) cancelled 36 driving licenses along with the RCs after the drivers were found violating the traffic norms here Thursday. Similarly, the Motor Vehicle Department (MVD) Bandipora seized 13 driving licenses (DLs) and 3 registration certificates (RCs). Additionally, fines totaling Rs 13,000 were collected from offenders. Seemingly, Wednesday’s accident of an overloaded vehicle has compelled the concerned to wake up from the slumber and ensure proper check of the vehicles so that the violations of traffic rules and regulations are strictly adhered by the people, especially the public transporters. But, such drives should not be conducted for a day only, as it needs to be continued till the rules are followed in letter and spirit. The traffic authorities in all the districts need to gear up at this juncture and ensure everyday checkups on different routes, especially in the busiest places so that the violators are identified and dealt with strictly as per the law, which would help the administration to prevent the fatal road accidents to a large extent. The events for the road safety awareness will not help the administration in reducing the number of accidents, but such drives would certainly bring a major and positive change on the ground and ensure the loss of precious lives are prevented well on time.