Government of Uttarakhand
Dehradun, 23 May:
An Automated Testing Lane would be introduced to make Char Dham Yatra route accident-free zone for which BRO, PWD, Transport and Police Department would inspect all accident prone areas and submit reports. The driving institutes would be asked to conduct hill driving training and installation of GPS in all the vehicles would be made mandatory.
Decision to this affect was taken in a meeting on Char Dham Yatra chaired by Chief Secretary Alok Kumar Jain on Wednesday. Mr. Jain advocated chalking out immediate and permanent plan to prevent road accidents and hundred percent compliance of the plan by adopting 'Zero Tolerance Culture'. He said that the vehicle fitness checking was conducted at 15 different places before heading to Yatra routes by Transport Department. However, there was no facility for engine and technical checking in short period. For this, Chief Secretary said, an Automated Testing Lane would be introduced in which all the technical checking of vehicles would be conducted in just 20 minutes. He said that GPS would be made compulsory in the vehicles and this would be ensured while giving them the permits. This would help in recording location, speed and condition of the vehicle and would come handy in checking over-speeding and overtaking.
Chief Secretary directed the officers of BRO, PWD, Transport and Police Department to conduct spot inspection of all the identified accident prone spots and submit report stating what measures could be taken in any particular place to prevent accident. He asked the officers to arrange for the hill driving test at Jhajra and Rishikesh. Mr. Jain said fine would be imposed on vehicles that would return back after completing the Yatra in less then 10 days. Describing Totaghati highly accident prone area, he directed the officials to keep special attention in this 30 km stretch.
DGP Vijay Raghav Pant stressed on 3-Es viz. Engineering, Education and Enforcement for prevention of road accidents. He said that a toll free number would be provided to the passengers in it they could complain about the over-speeding and overtaking by the drivers after which the vehicles would be intercepted in the nearest police chowki and the driver warned. The Meeting was also attended by Secretary Transport Umakant Panwar, Secretary Tourism Dr. SS Sandhu and other senior officers.
