Data shows that an average of 2,000 over-speeding cases have been reported every year, making it the highest and most consistent traffic violation in the State. In the last five years, more than 10,000 people had their licences suspended for over-speeding. Using mobile phones while driving a vehicle is the second most common offence that has been reported while jumping red lights stands third on the list. Surprisingly, much against the talk that most of the accidents in Goa happen at night and under the influence of alcohol, drunken driving offences are listed fourth in the datasheet.
While the data may not give a definite clue to the vexed issue of road safety, it certainly raises questions on where the problem lies. Goa has comparatively better roads, much better than the previous two-three years, the State has increased enforcement, there are Artificial Intelligence-enabled cameras that detect offences on the go and trigger a challan, the system of penalising has moved up a few notches with POS machines coming into operation, and to top it all, fines have increased manifold under the amended Motor Vehicles Act. So, what is going wrong?
While everything else remains constant, all fingers point towards better surveillance, whether it is manpower, CCTVs or even Sentinels. Former Goa DGP, Dr Muktesh Chander, who was at the helm when the traffic sentinel scheme was first introduced in the State while reacting to a report in this newspaper titled "Traffic Sentinel Scheme caught in red-tapism after revival proposal", recalls how the novel project was brought down by 'vote bank' politics.
Ironically, Chander recalls how the State saw a dip in road accidents while the scheme was in force and reiterates it being seamlessly operational in Delhi for over four years. That brings to the fore the crucial question of either re-introducing the Traffic Sentinel Scheme with necessary tweaks and app upgrades or covering more roads and highways with CCTV surveillance. The rise in road accidents is a clear sign of failing enforcement.
Recently, the government was dabbling with the idea of posting police officials in civil clothes at prominent bars and restaurants to trap drunk drivers. Over a year back, there was another idea where owners of bars provide a driver for those consuming alcohol beyond permissible limits. These stupid thoughts made a mockery of the situation instead of devising a practical solution. We need to stop copy-pasting ideas that don't fit into our system.
The State needs to get to the root of the problem. Many of the issues will be solved if there is a clear focus on tackling over-speeding, rash and negligent driving and drunken driving. The Banastarim accident is again a testimony that we have no road surveillance and enforcement systems.
It's time to re-introduce the Traffic Sentinel Scheme because sentinels can track a lot of violations that are escaping the eyes of enforcement. Give legal backing to those undertaking moral policing and keep politics out of the equation because this is a matter of life and death. When everything seems to be failing, and the accident rate is averaging one a day, there's no harm in re-introducing tried and tested ideas. Think again.
