Traffic in India: A solution proposed

This is from my own experiences in the city of Hyderabad in the year 2005, the last time I went to India. This is a solution that I found good enough to be implemented by anyone, and I wish people take cue and do the same as much as possible. This is applicable to all roads, all cities, all vehicles, and (nearly) always! This is from one person’s experience – so let’s be optimistic that this can be seen in all of our experience!

When you go on the road, if you see that a vehicle is violating a traffic rule – the most common being a red signal violation – do this:

1. Note down the license/registration number for the vehicle. If it’s a government-owned (RTC) bus, also note down the depot it belongs to (even the abbreviated name will do) and the start and end termini in its route.





2. Also, write down the date and time of the event, along with the best description of the place of occurrence.





3. Call the Traffic Police Control Room (you can get the appropriate number by calling 100 or directory enquiry in your city), or the Traffic Hotline/Help-line and lodge a complaint. If you can, get a policeman to write down the complaint on a “penalty ticket” (challan, as we call it in India) for the same.

The Traffic Police Control Room staff in Hyderabad informed me that the penalty ticket shall be sent by post to the vehicle owner’s registered address, and after three such penalty tickets that go unanswered, instructions will be given to seize the vehicle on sight. In the case of government vehicles including buses, the driver will be identified by the date and time of the event, and the penalty will be deducted from his salary. Three such penalties will require him to retake a license examination.

Believe me, people, this is really effective and does the job to a great extent. For instance, let’s assume I violate a traffic rule somewhere. If someone sees me and does the above, and I get a penalty ticket at my home, I may not care once. What if I get another one, and another one? Would I not panic, and go pay at least the last, and then stay put following rules as much as I can, ideally speaking? Well, I agree that many people might not be living at the address listed on their license, or even worse, some people might be driving someone’s vehicle! But then, we cannot let everyone pass just because of these exceptions!

At least in Hyderabad, the police were strict and sincere enough to write a penalty ticket for a police jeep that crossed a red signal when I lodged the complaint, also mentioning that it was a police vehicle!