Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, May 16: Launching a crackdown on bus accidents due to rash driving, the state government has decided to scrap not just the fitness certificates and route permits of buses involved in accidents but also the driving licenses of those behind the wheel of such buses.
This was revealed in a circular issued recently by the state transport commissioner and chairman of state transport authority in the city. The government will also issue a show-cause notice to the owner of the concerned vehicle, according to the circular.
“If the driver is found responsible for anybody’s death or causing critical injuries due to rash driving, the department will initiate action against him as per Section 19 of Motor Vehicles (MV) Act 1988,” the commissioner said in the circular.
The license of the concerned driver would be scrapped for six months and the vehicle’s fitness certificate would be cancelled very soon if police register a case as per Section 21 of MV Act. The particular vehicle cannot ply on the road until a fresh permit has been issued. The transport commissioner has also asked all regional transport officers (RTOs) to submit reports on the number of licenses cancelled under their jurisdiction.
The move has however led to strong opposition from the All Orissa Private Bus Owners’ Association, which is demanding withdrawal of the circular.
“If an accident occurs, the driver is responsible for it. How can the government take action against the vehicle owner?” asked DK Sahoo, general secretary of the association.
“If the government really wants to check rash driving, the transport authority should publish a list of drivers and conductors having valid driving licenses with their past conduct duly verified by the police so as to enable operators to engage them in driving passenger buses and avoid fatal accidents,” Sahoo added.
The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has criticised the state government for not taking adequate measures to ensure road safety.
The report said the state witnesses more accidents than the national average. Around 45,164 accidents have taken place in the last five years between 2008 and 2012 in which 17,946 people lost their lives.