Parents’ role important to curb underage driving: Academics

Ajay Joshi

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 20

In a massive crackdown against underage driving, lately, the city’s Police Commissionerate took a decision to curb minors from driving two wheelers and four wheelers and as the driving by minors is rampant in the city, therefore, this ruling has received a positive response from the residents. In addition to this, parents have been given a stern message to prevent their children from driving.

As per the figures estimated by the Traffic police, last year more than four hundred challans were issued to the underage drivers who were not only driving the vehicles without licence but were also found violating the traffic rules. ASI Traffic Jaswant Singh said, daily around 10-20 challans were issued to children aged between 14-18 years and several were dispersed with a warning notice, but still due to unavailability of any law, driving by minors could not be curbed. In the month of April only, about more than sixty challans were issued to the minors.

Police Commissioner Praveen Kumar Sinha said, immediate action would be taken against the owner of the vehicle under the “Motor Vehicle Act, if any minor is caught driving two or four wheeler vehicles.

Speaking in favour of the decision, one of the residents Lakhvinder Singh said, this was a much-needed regulation that should have been adopted earlier. In the beginning of this month a special metropolitan magistrate court in Hyderabad had sent ten parents behind bars for a day for allowing their minor children to drive, along with it, a 14-year-old was punished with a one-day juvenile home remand. Hence such stringent actions set examples for Punjab Police to inculcate fear among the residents against similar actions, Singh further added.

Another resident, Preeti Verma although applauded the new rule, but expressed her worry about dropping her children to school and coaching classes. She said, since me and my husband both are working, so we don’t get enough time to pick and drop our children from school but after the implementation of this rule we would have to arrange other means for the same.

Moreover, Rashmi Viz, principal Police DAV school said, “This is a commendable decision, cracking the whip against underage driving. She said parents would be much responsible now. Though the school authorities haven’t allowed students to enter in the school with vehicles but parents still seek permission to allow their children to come on two- wheelers. This would be curbed now as many time students could be seen driving recklessly and breaking traffic rules.