08 April,2010 10:19 AM IST | | Abha Singh
Almost 40 per cent of road accidents in India are a result of drink driving. While Delhi has issued over 2,000 challans in the last four months alone, 10,000 Bangalore residents have been caught intoxicated behind the wheel. Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai have recorded about 5,000 cases each.
In many such cases, there have been high-flying celebrities and members of the cru00e8me de la cru00e8me who have been directly involved in perpetrating such ghastly consequences. Sanjeev Nanda, Allister Pereira, Salman Khan and now Nooriya. More than one innocent life has gone in such individual crimes. It is unfortunate that despite media turning vociferous over the incidents of crime caused due to drink driving, our lawmakers have not risen equally to the occasion.
The laws relating to drink driving by any standard have become archaic. They were incorporated in the Indian Penal Code in the year 1860 when the motor car was yet to be invented. Incidentally, the first commercial motor car was created by Gottlieb Diamler and Karl Benz in the year 1885.
The most stringent of the provisions relating to drink driving is contained in Section 304(a). This section stipulates that whoever causes death to a person through a rash and negligent act shall be punished with imprisonment up to two years. This is hardly a punishment for taking away the lives of innocent people and does notu00a0 satisfy the criteria of awarding punishment in terms of essential principles of criminology, which prescribe that punishment should serve as much as a deterrent to others as much to punishing the person for his crimes.
With the passage of time traffic on the roads have increased. Modern, large and powerful, high pick-up vehicles have started getting on to the roads. Social habits have changed with the youth taking to fun and frolic amongst liquor parties in high measure. Most of the liquor parties take place late into the nights. When the party animals return home in the dark of the night, the roads are empty and provide enough scope to speed up vehicles, putting the lives of passers-by in peril.
The punishment for drink driving is a meager Rs 950, which is sufficient to get an offender out on bail even if he has fatally knocked down or crippled someone. Trials too, go on for years without success. What is required is a concerted action on the part of policymakers, law enforcers and the public.u00a0
On part of the law enforcers, quick and decisive administrative action is required which will result in quick investigations, which in turn, will reduce the pendency of such cases in the courts.
The policymakers should also move to rectify the shortcomings in the present legal set-up. Ultimately, it is only the supreme will of the Indians which can prevail over the state machinery to bring about these long-awaited changes and improve the system.
