In a bid to ensure a safe start to the new year, the Kolkata Police issued a stern, tongue-in-cheek warning on Wednesday, cautioning citizens about midnight raids and potential police custody for traffic violators on December 31 and January 1. This move was backed by alarming data revealing a massive spike in traffic offences in the city during the festive week.
Alarming Spike in Festive Week Violations
The police warning was not an empty threat but a response to hard statistics. From December 24 to 30, the city recorded a staggering 56,000 traffic violations, averaging around 8,000 cases daily. A significant portion of these offences was serious in nature. The same period saw approximately 298 cases of drink driving, with 73 cases on Christmas Eve and 77 on Christmas Day itself. Notably, even during the recent spell of extremely cold nights, 24 to 30 drink driving cases were reported each night.
While this year's numbers are lower than the 1.1 lakh cases reported in the corresponding period last year, they are significantly higher than the average of 40,000 cases seen between 2019 and 2023. This concerning trend has prompted the police to take decisive action.
Focus on Rash Driving and Two-Wheeler Menace
To curb the menace, Kolkata Police is setting up around 75 nakas (checkpoints) across the city. The force has identified a major concern: the combination of rash and negligent driving along with signal jumping. Together, these two violations constitute a substantial 25% of all traffic offences recorded in the week.
Two-wheelers have once again emerged as the worst violators. Data from the past two days reveals a telling pattern: cases of drink driving and dangerous driving after 9 PM were almost on par with common two-wheeler offences like riding without a helmet or triple riding. Specifically, between December 28 and 30, the city witnessed over 100 cases of dangerous driving and 60 cases of drink driving. This was compared to 147 cases of helmet-less riding and 89 cases of triple riding.
Ensuring a Smooth Start to the New Year
The primary focus for Kolkata Police as the clock strikes midnight will be to ensure smooth traffic and pedestrian flow across the city on the first day of 2025. The humorous yet firm advertisement serves as a final warning to revellers, emphasizing that law enforcement will be out in full force to penalize those breaking traffic rules, especially drink driving and reckless driving.
The police's data-driven approach highlights a sustained effort to tackle perennial road safety issues during high-risk periods, aiming to prevent accidents and ensure public safety as the city celebrates.
