Delhi Police gear up to hand challans, recorded clips to miscreants on Holi

This Holi, there is no escape for hooligans, who disturb traffic in the national Capital. By the time the fiesta fever fades, they will have police constables hunting them down with challans and recorded clips of their offences committed on the day of the festival (March 6), a senior police official said on Sunday.

Such a step is being taken for the first time to bring under control roadside hooliganism in the name of festivals, which severely affects traffic and poses great threat to human lives, said Muktesh Chander, special commissioner of Police (Traffic). He further said: “For some people, Holi is a festival for boozing, over-speeding, stunt-biking and doing things that cause chaos among traffic. This has to change.”

On March 6 (Holi), recordings between 8 am and 6 pm will be obtained from CCTV cameras installed across the national Capital. They shall be monitored thoroughly within a day or two, after which, officials of constable rank will be sent to the residences of the traffic violators with challans and video clips, showing his/her vehicle committing a traffic offence, recorded in a CD. And it is the violator who will have to bear the cost of the operation, duly included in the total penalty amount, said a traffic official.

 Special commissioner Muktesh Chander also informed that more than 100 teams will be deployed around the city to prosecute traffic violators on the spot. Focus areas for the police will be Trans-Yamuna region, especially areas around Nand Nagri for the highest number of drunken driving cases during festivals; and the Barakhamba road area for stunt bikers.

In 2014, around 20,000 people were prosecuted on festival days, including Holi, Kanwariyan, Dussehra and Diwali, among others – according to the records of Delhi Police. On Holi itself, 13,015 people were prosecuted as compared to 10,339 in the preceding year, showing a reported 25 per cent rise in traffic violation during the festival of colours.

However, challans were sent through post, which is going to change this year. Sending a cop personally would make an impact, considering the seriousness of the offence, said a senior official.

 Only six fatal accidents were reported in 2014 on Holi, as compared to 14 in 2013 and 13 cases in 2012, the police records revealed.