Suspend DL for not wearing helmet: Odisha govt

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has directed the police and Transport Commissioner to strictly implement the rule of suspension of driving license (DL) for driving two-wheeler without wearing helmet.

In a letter to the DGP and Transport Commissioner, Transport secretary Madhusudan Padhi directed to take steps for suspension of DL of the offender in case of detection of violation of Helmet Law.

He also asked them to submit a district-wise report on suspension of DL for violation of Helmet Law during the year 2019 and January to October, 2020 for appraisal of the Supreme Court Committee within seven days.

“During the year 2019, in the State, two-wheelers were involved in 4688 road accidents out of total 11064 road accidents in which 2398 persons died out of total 5333 deaths. Out of the 2398 persons who died, 2156 persons were not wearing helmets at the time of the accident. Wearing a helmet could have saved many lives,” Padhi mentioned in the letter.

As per the information received, during the year 2019 about 8.5 lakh persons have been detected by Police and Odisha Motor Vehicles Department (OMVD) officers violating the Helmet Law, he said.

“As per Section 194 D of the MV Act, whoever drives a motorcycle or causes or allows a motorcycle to be driven in contravention of the provisions of section 129 or the rules of regulation made thereunder shall be punishable with a fine of one thousand rupees and he shall be disqualified for holding license for a period of three months,” Padhi said in the letter.