Chandigarh Traffic Police: New Year agenda to be honk-free roads

The traffic police officers were, however, unable to elaborate on the “unnecessary blowing of horn” and how they would capture it to term it a violation and book the violator. (File)

IN AN attempt to replicate Kathmandu traffic police’s concept of honk-free roads in Nepal, the Chandigarh Traffic Police has now decided to discipline motorists driving on city roads by the end of 2018. The traffic police has formulated a plan in which they will hold awareness drives for about 45 days, and shall subsequently begin to challan people for excessive and unnecessary blowing of vehicle horns on city roads.

To strictly enforce it, the traffic police personnel equipped with hand-held and body-fitted video cameras shall record the violation and then book the offender. The entire process will be carried out in the mandatory presence of a traffic marshal. Traffic police officers maintain this move will help in reducing the noise pollution level.

Traffic Police officers told Chandigarh Newsline that the “horn-related offences” are covered under Section 177 of the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988, which also prescribes the penalty which can be imposed on the violator.

In Kathmandu, honking was made punishable and fines were imposed to stop unnecessary honking in the month of April 2017 and by December 2017, the concept was successfully implemented.

“I borrowed this idea from Kathmandu police. It was subsequently accepted and approved by my senior officers, including DGP T S Luthra. We shall soon begin with our awareness drive at traffic junctions, and shall also be sensitising youth by holding demonstrations and lectures in private as well as government schools and colleges. We shall also be distributing ‘I Will Not Honk’ stickers among motorists. We shall ask them to paste the stickers on their vehicles’ steering wheels so that they exercise restraint every time they feel the urge to press the horn,” said SSP (Traffic)Shashank Anand.

Leaving no scope for the violator to contest the challan in court, Anand added, “We shall videograph the violation and then issue the challan. All this shall be done in the presence of traffic marshals, who will also be witness to the offence.”

“There is a difference between blowing horn and honking. People keep honking unnecessarily. Such motorists shall now be liable to face the penalty,” another traffic police officer told Chandigarh Newsline.

The traffic police officers were, however, unable to elaborate on the “unnecessary blowing of horn” and how they would capture it to term it a violation and book the violator.

In Chandigarh, blowing horn is already banned in silence zones covering Sector 1 Capital Complex, Sector 12, Sector 14 (Panjab University), area comprising 100 metres around all hospitals, educational institutions, courts and religious places.