Srinagar Thar crash: J&K traffic police ramp up checks, issue advisory to schools, coaching centres

The traffic and administrative authorities in Kashmir have started a major crackdown on underage and stunt driving by seizing hundreds of vehicles, mostly two-wheelers, while also issuing an advisory to schools and coaching centres to not allow minors to drive the vehicles to the institutes.
Since the death of two teens, driving a speeding SUV in Srinagar on Thursday, the traffic police have been engaged in a focussed drive for the past three days on such violations and seized vehicles being driven by youngsters without driving licences or involved in other violations.
“I have given instructions to staff to focus on this particular violation – that is minors driving vehicles. This won’t stop unless parents and society also don’t come forward. Losing these children in such a way is never good,” Srinagar senior superintendent of police (SSP traffic) Muzaffar Shah said.
“I didn’t get enough cooperation from society and parents, now we have changed calibrations and focussed on minors driving vehicles and two-wheelers. We will try to control this as soon as possible,” he added.
On Saturday, Srinagar deputy commissioner (DC) Bilal Mohi-Ud-Din Bhat chaired a meeting of the District Road Safety Committee (DRSC) with the aim to curb road accidents, ensure strict enforcement and an emergency management plan.
“The DC called upon parents of school and college going students, civil society members and influencers to play their role to avoid driving of two or four wheeler vehicles by teenagers and curb road accidents like Tengpora,” a government spokesperson said.
In rural areas, the traffic police on Saturday issued an advisory to schools and coaching centres against minors driving vehicles.
“All school authorities, private coaching institutes and parents are advised not to allow students or minor children to drive two or four wheelers. This trend has claimed many precious lives so far and has to be curbed in order to avoid further obliteration,” SSP (Traffic, Rural Kashmir) Ravinder Pal Singh said.
The advisory said allowing a minor to drive a vehicle is a serious offence and warrants punitive action under Section 199A M.V Act. 1988 against the guardian of the juvenile or owner of the vehicle.
“Moreover such guardian or owner of the vehicle under laid down norms shall be punishable with imprisonment for terms which may extend to three years and with a fine of twenty-five thousand rupees. Moreover, registration of the motor vehicle used in the commission of the offence shall be cancelled for a period of twelve months,” Singh said.
The advisory also cautioned that the juvenile (minor) driving vehicles will not be issued a driving licence till they attain 25 years of age.
“Where an offence under the above said act is committed by a juvenile, then notwithstanding section 4 or 7, such juvenile shall not be eligible for granting a driving licence under section 9 or learner’s licence under section 8 until such juvenile shall attain the age of twenty five years. In such an offence, a juvenile shall be punishable with such fine as provided in the Act, while any custodial sentence may be modified as per the provisions of the juvenile Justice Act, 2000,” it added.
Chief minister Omar Abdullah on Friday expressed his anguish over the death of two teenage boys who were killed after their SUV met with a mishap in Srinagar, calling for commuters to develop better road sense.
The mishap on Tengpora bypass road, caught on camera, revealed that a speeding Mahindra Thar vehicle hit a stationary truck before ramming into a road divider leading to loss of two 17-year-old school boys and serious injuries to a third.