Kumar Rajiv Nayan
Sasaram: Bihar government has made wearing helmet mandatory for pillion riders on bikes for safety reasons. Principal Secretary, Department of Transport, Sujata Chaturvedi has sent a letter to the DMs and SPs asking them to implement the rule strictly. She has also directed them to send monthly report to the headquarters so that those reports could be submitted to the Road Safety Committee formed by the apex court.
She said that the bikers, who do not abide by the rules and regulation, will be fined under section 129 and 196 of the Motor Vehicle Act. She said that a PIL had been filed in the apex court holding the officials concerned and department responsible for unexpected rise in road accidents and the court had taken cognizance of it.
As per government report, 904 bikers and 1,084 pillion riders had lost their lives in 2015 in Bihar though the actual data is much more and alarming. At least 105 bikers have lost their lives on roads in Rohtas district alone last year.
Rohtas District Transport Officer(DTO) Jai Kumar Dwiwedi said that after receiving of letter from the Principal Secretary, he has initiated action and asked all the police stations to launch vehicle checking on regular basis and stress use of helmets by the bikers and pillion riders as well. He admitted that the Motor Vehicle Act is not being implemented strictly that causes often road accidents. He also said that the people should themselves follow the rules for their safety.