The Madras High Court on Tuesday wanted to know why the police fine only two-wheeler riders for not wearing helmets and do not appear to take any action against pillion riders. It pointed out that the Motor Vehicle Act and rules framed under it require both the rider as well as pillion rider to wear a headgear while riding on the vehicles.
The court also wanted to know the action taken by the police so far to create awareness among the people on the necessity to wear helmets by erecting hoardings at vantage points. The queries were raised during the hearing of a public interest litigation petition seeking stringent implementation of the helmet and seat belt rules.
K.K. Rajendran, 62, an activist from Korattur here, had filed the PIL claiming that more than 70% of motor accidents occurred due to failure of drivers to adhere to traffic rules. He claimed that as many as 4,091 helmet-less riders died in road accidents in 2016 while 2,956 died in 2017.
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