CROSSING A FINE LINE!

 

_“My son took my car and crashed it. I had no idea that he had the keys with him.”

“My husband refuses to wear a helmet.”

“Don’t drink and drive! Easier said than done!”

Excuses, excuses all the way! Excuses that can often lead to irreversible physical or mental damage, or even a fatality.

Every year, the maximum number of deaths are caused by road accidents, claim the statistics. Families are torn apart, and when nominal fines are levied, the offenders pay up and then do the same thing again or try bribes to escape the law.

On August 9^th, 2019, the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act was published in the Gazette. The axe fell on September 1^st, 2019, when all fines relating to road rules violations went through the roof. Protests spread across the country, leading to Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Sri. Nitin Gadkari, softening the blow by announcing that each state could choose its quantum of fines.

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Officials argued that instead of raising fines arbitrarily, the law enforcers should have convinced the public of the ill-effects of breaching traffic rules, quoting the abysmal roads across the country, death traps in themselves. They demanded that massive potholes be repaired before such fines were levied. One police official mentioned a fine line between low fines that were ineffective and harsh fines that would impel offenders to evade the law, along with much money changing hands, leading to corruption.

Many states are taking the populist way out to reduce these fines. However, according to a Hindu newspaper report (7^th May 2019), the Government has released data to prove that almost 1,50,000 people die in road crashes annually. WHO clarified that this number could be around 2,99,000, according to Piyush Tiwari, founder of the Save LIFE Foundation. India signed the Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety in 2015, committing to halve road crash deaths by 2020.

 Exactly how cheap is human life in India? Does our fatalistic bent of mind reconcile us to the fact that whatever will be, will be and nothing we do can prevent it? Or is it the attitude that declares, “Let anything happen as long as it does not happen to me.” There is no guarantee that it might not happen to us one day, by which time it will be too late.

The same drivers who raise a furore after breaking traffic rules in India turn into model citizens when abroad, in countries harsh on traffic offenders. These drivers carry their papers, maintain pollution checks, drive sedately, stop at red lights, wear helmets, and uncomplainingly cough up cash as fines. Why, then, can’t they behave thus back home?

Road offences that do not lead to fatalities may have fines brought down. However, certain offences should never be condoned.

Offences by juveniles should be treated stringently, and proper action taken.  Guardians unaware of their wards’ handling of vehicles cannot plead ignorance anymore. The juvenile too will be tried under the Juvenile Justice Act. Underage drivers are a danger to themselves, and others, and should be kept off the roads. Turning a blind eye to wilfulness could lead to irreparable tragedy and heartbreak. Only a strict law could force guardians to keep a watchful eye on their wards, if only for fear of stringent punishment.

Not wearing a helmet, or donning a cosmetic one, avoiding seat belts, over-speeding or racing, and overloading two-wheelers, especially with children, can seem daring feats, but they are more to do with sheer stupidity, than otherwise. Accidents, in such cases, can lead to disabilities, paralysis, coma and often, death.  

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The worst crime is driving drunk. As a Japanese proverb goes, a man takes a drink and then the drink takes the man; especially behind the wheel, when he is not in his senses, his reactions slow. A menace on the road, he can kill others, unaware of the gravity of his actions. This cannot be condoned, and such offenders should be handed the highest penalty possible.

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A message to protesters: A responsible driver need not worry about fines. The innocent drive safe, the guilty need to watch out. So, by protesting, you abet traffic offenders. The choice is yours – safety versus recklessness.

An apt safety poster says it all. “Headlights can be replaced, heads can’t. Be aware.”

 'This post is a part of Blogchatter Half Marathon.'

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