A Telangana-registered private car was stopped at Maxem Canacona on Tuesday because it had a sticker on the car which said ‘Police’. The occupants of the car turned out to be Telangana police proceeding on a holiday to Goa, and they were let off after the sticker was removed. Last month another Telangana-registered car was halted at Pollem check post for a similar offence and the occupants were allowed entry after the sticker was taken off.
Goa is witnessing innumerable cases of vehicles flashing an assortment of stickers ” navy, army, police and even ones that say “on government duty”. There was one photograph captured by this newspaper a couple of months back in Margao with a vehicle having ‘Ghost’ as a sticker in place of the registration number. The sad irony is that the vehicle was spotted right amid security personnel, as the driver raced past one of the roads exiting the city.
Vehicle offences ” from changing headlights of cars, using modifications to silencers and horns, and carrying fancy number plates that have digits that defy RTO rules have been let off by those manning the roads, and the few who have been trapped under the police scanner must consider themselves extremely unlucky, to say the least.
Earlier this year police cracked down on motorcycles without proper number plates and those using modified silences, last week there was a swoop down on such vehicles in Vasco. However, barring the occasional penal action against violators, enforcement remains mute bystanders. A few months back, legislators were on their feet to inform the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly that police have been overlooking tinted glasses and letting go of such offences. What followed was a quick spell of action following Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s assurance.
Inconsistencies in enforcing laws have been the biggest pitfall directly linked to road discipline. A traffic police's picture of seizing a bike because of a modified silencer means literally nothing if seen in the larger context of streamlining systems and setting deterrents. Goa needs sustained action against violators on all fronts, and there can’t be any piecemeal efforts.
The car with a police sticker was stalled at Maxem only because cops were stationed there to manage traffic after Monday's accident between a car and a bus that claimed one life and left five others injured. The Telangana car had successfully passed through the checkpoint without any hassles.
In the normal course, road accidents bring in a lot of trauma and anxiety and fingers are generally pointed towards road conditions, enforcement and reckless driving. An important component that is barely discussed is the need to reign in basic road discipline. Carelessness and rash driving stem from the fact that motorists have taken the system for granted, just like the tourists and mischievous locals who drive in with fancy stickers, heavily tinted glasses and odd number plates.
The ’sab kuch chalta hai” attitude has to change, and for that to happen the enforcement has to step up its game. Don’t expect citizens, tourists and other misbehaving visitors to change themselves in Goa. We need to show them the way.
