Tension prevailed at Pattimattom near Kizhakkambalam along the eastern suburbs of the district on Wednesday morning when the Motor Vehicles Department’s crackdown on overloaded tipper and mini tipper lorries was resisted by lorry owners and workers.
The MVD squad faced two such incidents in quick succession. The first was reported around 7 a.m. when an overloaded mini tipper lorry, owned by an office-bearer of a lorry owners’ organisation, was intercepted.
When officials demanded the vehicle key after writing the check report, the driver allegedly walked away with the key after parking the vehicle on the roadside. Later, the police took the vehicle into custody after a complaint was lodged by MVD officials.
Eventually, it was found that the vehicle had been carrying 34 tonnes of gravel, which was double the permissible limit. MVD officials slapped a fine of ₹19,000 on the owner, besides suspending the licence of the driver for three months.
According to Motor Vehicle Rules, overloading attracts a fine of ₹2,000 and ₹1,000 for every additional tonnage over and above the permissible limit.
An hour later, officials intercepted another similarly overloaded vehicle. When they were about to weigh the vehicle, the driver parked it in the middle of the road at Pattimattom Junction, obstructing traffic. “Again, the vehicle owner and a set of hooligans allegedly created a scene and obstructed our work,” an MVD official said.
Later, the police took the vehicle into custody, besides registering a case against the owner and the driver on the charge of preventing a government servant from discharging official duties.
The special drive saw as many as 12 squads hitting the road, especially in the eastern part of the district, as early as 5 a.m. The drive followed a High Court directive seeking action against operation of overloaded vehicles that damaged roads. Such vehicles wreak havoc, especially in areas around Kizhakkambalam, Pattimattom, and Pallikkara. The squads deployed at Angamaly, Kalady, Manjapra, North Paravur, Perumbavoor, Kizhakkambalam, Pattimattom, Kolencherry, Thripunithura, and Muvattupuzha remained on duty till 2 p.m. after which they were replaced by another 18 squads.
The first batch took action against more than 200 vehicles, suspended licences of drivers who were found guilty and unloaded the excess content. The drive continued late into the night.
