Taking drunk and over-speeding drivers by surprise, the Delhi Traffic Police launched a special drive on Friday night and challaned as many as 1,284 vehicles.
Asked how the latest drive was different from the checks carried out on most days, a police officer said it was saturated as all 43 traffic circles in the Capital were covered and the number of hours for checks also went up.
“Usually pickets are put in certain areas and vehicles are stopped from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., but last night it was stretched beyond midnight and the exercise that started at the usual time lasted till 1.30 a.m., i.e., five hours,” said the officer. The drive was initiated due to a recent spurt in the number of fatal accidents due to drunk driving and over speeding.
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Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Anil Shukla said unlike usual drives that focus mostly on violations by those driving smaller vehicles, Friday’s drive also included checking of heavy vehicles which pass through the city at night as a lot of complaints had been received against those drivers.
The numbers also reflected the extensive nature of the drive, as the total number of vehicles prosecuted was around six times the average number recorded on most days, which is roughly around 200.