Overage vehicles to go off road Special squads to act against habitual offenders

 By Ranjit Thakur

Jammu, Jan 31:

With vehicular population density in Jammu reaching unmanageable limits, the traffic police in coordination with the regional transport authority are deliberating a phase out old, polluting vehicles from the roads.

"We have decided to phase out all vehicles over-25-years-old in accordance with the motor vehicle act", Inspector General of Police (IGP) traffic Hemant Kumar Lohiya told.

"We have constituted a special squad in collaboration with other departments headed by the concerned regional transport officer (RTO) to check unfit and over aged vehicles as they have become main cause of accidents" he added.

Sources disclosed that the special squads shall have responsibilities beyond checking the over aged vehicles. They shall check route permits, violations of traffic norms and importantly they have the duty to check and remove all over aged vehicles like trucks, busses, minibuses includes other commercial vehicles which are over 25 years old. The teams will start their first phase of work in Doda, Kishtwar, Badarwah and other hilly areas where more over aged vehicles are reportedly operating thus enhancing the chances of accidents.

About 50,000 vehicles are being added to the vehicle population annually in the twin capital cities of the state and its need of hour to remove all unfit vehicles from the state.

"Due to the rapid increase in the number of vehicles without a proportionate increase in the road length and infrastructure, traffic congestion on roads in Jammu and Srinagar has become a routine," a senior traffic officer said.

Expressing concerns about the rising trend of over speeding, overloading by local minibus drivers he said, "We have canceled number of route permits and cancelled number of licenses of those habitual violators of traffic norms."

Expressing concern over the increasing vehicular population in Jammu, IGP traffic said, "The road length in Jammu city is 702.22 kms. The density of vehicular population in Jammu city is 574 vehicles per kilometer".

Meanwhile, speaking to Kashmir Images, Regional Transport Officer (RTO) Jammu said, "I am not aware about constitution of such squads. There is not a single vehicles on road which has crossed 25 years" he mentioned.

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