Raipur: The Kawardha District Police in Chhattisgarh has set an example worth emulating for all by following the spirit of - Charity begins at home! The man behind this transformation is none other than Superintendent of Police (SP) Dr Lal Umed Singh.

Aimed at bringing down the road accidents and fatalities in the district and changing the mind-set of people regarding road safety rules, Dr Singh has introduced a strict regulation within the Police Department that every police personnel riding a two-wheeler will compulsorily wear helmet and the malpractice of 3-people riding a single two-wheeler has to be strictly done away with.

This step to infuse vitality to road safety campaigning with such new insights into road-user behaviour and behavioural modification is something of its kind which has happened probably for the first time in Chhattisgarh. 

The District SP has appealed to citizens to look beyond the confines of road safety standards. Through this initiative a public message is being delivered that in order to make people realise and endeavour for a good cause, one has to set examples not verbally but through their own actions.

In the recent past, three road-accidents took place in a span of just a few days which affected three police constables, who all were not wearing helmets, and one was quite seriously injured and one Constable died. This somehow intrigued SP Dr Lal Umed Singh to take this initiative.

In his words, many police personnel have lost lives in road-accidents in the past, and we being public servants, if we are not well-compliant with the road safety norms, how can we urge common citizens to follow the same.

Under the instructions of Dr Singh, disciplinary action is taken against those policemen who don’t wear helmets while riding a two-wheeler. So far show-cause notices have been issued to 29 such policemen. The said practice is not only being followed at the SP office, but all the police-stations within its jurisdictions are strictly observing this rule.

Dr Singh further added that it is true that no system can be 100 per cent perfect on every parameter but in order to ensure our and others safety, every driver has to be aware and learn to control themselves, which cannot be made effective without the cooperation of all the sections of the society.

The initiative assumes significance in view of the fact that road traffic incidents in India have been on a steady rise over the years. The recent death of former Tata group chairman Cyrus P Mistry in the gruesome car accident on Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway caught the nation’s attention. A very few accidents which become a national issue but otherwise, a road accident takes place every four minutes on the Indian roads, which as usual are not paid heed to.

Our country, having over 300 million vehicles, out of which 74 per cent, are two-wheelers, more than 1.5 lakh people lose their lives annually to such accidents. It is noteworthy that half of the aforesaid deaths are reported to be of the two-wheeler drivers and occupants. The real impediment towards achieving road safety is perhaps the lack of compliance with the road-safety rules by the citizens. /BI/