The new Motor Vehicles Act comes into effect from September 1. Higher traffic penalties for offences like jumping traffic lights, driving in the wrong lane and drunken driving will be applicable starting today. In some cases, an individual violating laws could end up paying the fine and going to jail. Amendments to the Motor Vehicle Act were passed by the Parliament recently.
Here are some of the major modifications in the rules for traffic violations:
Driving without a seat-belt can now land you a fine of Rs 1,000, which is steep rise from Rs 100 earlier. Using mobile phones while driving now attracts a penalty of Rs 1,000-5,000, which was earlier Rs 1,000.
Unauthorised use of vehicles without licence will cost you Rs 5,000, up from previous penalty amount of Rs 1,000.
The fine for drunk driving has been hiked from Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000. Drivers will now also be fined Rs 10,000 for not giving way to emergency vehicles like ambulance and fire brigade.
Repeated offenders will be fined with higher penalties besides facing the risk of going to jail.
The penalty for driving without licence has increased from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000. Taxi aggregators like Ola and Uber will be fined up to Rs 1 lakh for violating driving licences.
The penalty for overspeeding is between Rs. 1,000- Rs. 2,000, which was earlier between Rs. 400 to Rs. 1,000 for LMVs and Rs 2,000 for medium passenger vehicles.
Penalty in case of driving when mentally or physically unfit to drive has been increased to Rs 1,000 from Rs 200 for first-time offense. For second and subsequent offenses, the fine has been hiked from up to Rs 500 to Rs 2,000.
Offenses relating to accidents can now lead to a jail time of up to 6 months and/or fine up to Rs 5,000 for first time offence. For the second offence, imprisonment of up to 1 year and/or a fine up to Rs 10,000 will be levied.
Driving without insurance attracts a fine of Rs 2,000. Two-wheeler riders without helmets will be fined Rs 1,000 and can face a three-month licence suspension. Overloaded vehicles will be fined Rs 20,000
Underage drivers committing road offences will now also penalise the owner of the vehicle or the guardian. A penalty of Rs 25,000 will be charged along with three years in jail and cancellation of registration.
Traffic violations are not the only rules being modified under the new Motor Vehicles Act. Road contractors can now also be penalised for failing to maintain standards pertaining to road design. Enforcement authorities will have to pay twice the penalty for any offence committed.
The law also aims to reduce incidents of untrained people obtaining driving licences (DL) by reducing human interference. Under the fresh rules, the process of obtaining a DL will be much harder, to keep away untrained drivers from roads. Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the process of obtaining a driving licence will be computerised and anyone from a minister to a parliamentarian will be issued licences only after passing online tests.
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