Archive for May, 2007
May 21st, 2007
Navi Mumbai: On a lazy Sunday afternoon, Mulund-based car dealer Haresh Bhai Gagwani (42) decided to check out some new cars on sale in Belapur CBD (central business district). The trip to Navi Mumbai helped him nab a fleeing motorist involved in a hit-and-run accident along Palm Beach Road.
“At around 3.45 pm, my uncle and I had reached the Seawoods end of Palm Beach Road, where I was stunned to see a driver in a silver Tata Indigo (MH 06 W 7686) hit a woman and her child while they were crossing the road. The driver did stop a little distance ahead to look back at the damage done, and then fled at a speed of nearly 100 km per hour,’’ recalled Gagwani.
He instinctively started chasing the driver, and even shouted at him to stop, but the accused (later identified as 38-year-old Santoshkumar Balkumar) kept dodging Gagwani to escape on the Palm Beach Road. He even took a sharp U-turn at Belapur to turn back towards Nerul side, but Gagwani managed to block him at the roadside after a 2 km chase.
The victims—27-year-old Josabin Makan Mopan and her seven-month son Sunil Makan Mopan—have been seriously injured in the accident. Josabin is a labourer working at Palm Beach Road.
As soon as Gagwani corned the fleeing driver, he immediately pulled him out and caught him in a bear-like hug so that he did not run away. At the same time, another motorist Amrit Pal Singh, who runs a local crime magazine ‘Gunheshod’ noticed the struggle between Gagwani and the accused driver and immediately called the police wireless van to the spot.
“He (Balkumar) kept threatening me as I held him tight, but I coolly told him not to show his ‘dadagiri’ and actually show some ‘insaniyat’ (humanity), as he had grievously hurt the woman and her child who were still lying on the road,’’ said Gagwani.
Meanwhile, Amrit Pal Singh stopped a motorcyclist to help take the bleeding child to hospital; the woman was still lying motionless, and later taken to a local hospital. Many people had gathered on Palm Beach Road to watch, but none came forward to help Gagwani and Singh.
The accused driver also seemed to be drunk. “If Haresh Bhai had not managed to chase and nab this drunk driver, he probably would have escaped from facing any police action,’’ said Amrit Pal Singh.
Meanwhile, the zonal deputy commissioner of police, Amar Jadhav, said that the accused Balkumar, who is a Nerul-based construction contractor has been arrested for rash and negligent driving under section 279 of the IPC. “We have also sent the accused for a medical test to see if he was drunk,’’ said Jadhav.
Source: TOI(Mumbai epaper)
May 16th, 2007
New Delhi: Your wallet will get much lighter if you are a reckless driver. The government hopes to put the brakes on indisciplined driving across the country by imposing stiff penalties. And for the purpose, it brought a Bill in Parliament on Tuesday that proposes to raise fines and penalties while providing a high compensation package for victims of road accidents.
Delhi drivers need to be particularly careful as they will have to pay more than others. The city will have the highest penalties for traffic violations as Delhi High Court has mandated an across-the-board Rs 500 fine in addition to the hiked fines provided for under the Motor Vehicles Act.
This Act is now sought to be amended. Road transport minister T R Baalu has tabled the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2007, which proposes the following: While speeding could cost you Rs 400-Rs 1,000 (with a doubling of the fine for repeat violators), drunken driving could get your licence suspended for 3 months besides imprisonment of 6 months and a fine of Rs 2,000 for the first offence. A second offence could lead to imprisonment for up to 2 years or fine of Rs 2,000 or both.
Under-age driving would be slapped with a fine of Rs 1,000 and imprisonment of up to 3 months for the first offence and Rs 2,000 for a subsequent offence. Vehicles found plying without registration papers would face a hefty fine of up to Rs 10,000 for the first offence and a maximum of Rs 20,000 for a repeat offence.
The proposed legislation also authorises state governments to compound the fines if required. With an increase in the number of hit-and-run accidents, the government plans to hike accident compensation to Rs 1 lakh for death and Rs 50,000 for partial disability. The bill envisages setting up of a solatium fund for compensation to accident victims.
According to a World Bank and WHO report, more than 1.2 million people die in road crashes globally every year, of which around 92,000 deaths occur in India.
Source: TOI(Delhi epaper)
May 14th, 2007
Gurgaon: About 3,000 Protesters From 130 Gurgaon Villages Block NH-8 For 2 Hours. Much to the chagrin of Haryana government’s claim that the state is a favourite destination for SEZ developers and industries, about 3,000 farmers from 130 villages from Gurgaon and adjoining areas blocked the traffic for two hours on Sunday on NH-8 near Manesar against land acquisition by the government.
The protesters called off the traffic blockade after the Gurgaon deputy commissioner (DC) Rakesh Gupta promised that the government would respond to their demands by Wednesday.
However, farmers have unanimously decided to block the traffic again on May 27, if the government fails to respond. Shouting slogans against the state government, farmers said that they would prefer to die than let the government acquire their land.
‘‘Pachgaon Banega Nandigram’’ read one of the banners put up by the farmers from village Pachgaon. Haryana government has issued a notification to acquire the land of this village.
‘‘The government has moved ahead to acquire about 250 acre of land in Manesar village. Once the land is acquired people will have no place to live. We have demanded that the government must not forcibly acquire land to benefit industrial and corporate houses,’’ said Surender Singh, Sarpanch of Garouli village.
Farmers said that the option of selling land should be left to the farmers. ‘‘We strongly feel that all farmers don’t want to sell their land. If that’s the last option for them, then they must get market price. But the main aim behind such a move by all of us is to ensure that the government does not acquire our land. Wherever they have issued notices they must stop taking further action,’’ said Brahm Prakash, president of Krishi Bhoomi Bachao Kishan Majdoor Sangharsh Samiti.
Farmers from five villages from Garhi Harsaru have asked the government to stop the Reliance Industries from taking possession of the land, though all formality has been completed. ‘‘We have told the government not to do any such thing till July 11 when our case comes up for hearing in Punjab and Haryana High Court,’’ Surender cautioned.
Source: TOI(Delhi epaper)
May 14th, 2007
Secunderabad has got the tag of a being the ‘other’ city. While the state government and civic authorities have gone about sprucing up posh areas and IT parks, it forgot about Secunderabad, once a flourishing British cantonment.
Secunderabad has been primarily a residential part of the twin cities, with unique laid-back bungalows helped along by an
expansive green cover. But the rapid urbanisation has played havoc here with bungalows giving way to multistoried apartments and shopping complexes sprouting just about anywhere. This man-made disaster is due to the combined neglect of the municipal authorities, Cantonment Board and traffic police.
Traffic bottlenecks in Secunderabad are mainly at three points: CTO junction, Patny and YMCA. The two flyovers at CTO and Parade Grounds are of little help as they merely serve as cross-over points instead of distributing traffic into the feeder roads.
The flow of traffic interestingly is different in the mornings and evenings, as office-goers move at a snail’s pace in the mornings from Rasoolpura to Greenlands, Punjagutta and on to the new boom town, Madhapur. In the evening, the flow is in the reverse direction. And herein lies the root of the problem as traffic personnel seem to be unaware of this uni-directional flow. The traffic signals should be timed and synchronised according to this flow of traffic.
Another factor leading to the jams is the blocking of certain key roads by the army, ostensibly for security reasons. The Mornington Road connecting RTA office, Trimulgherry to Military Hospital could be used as an alternate route for motorists going to RK Puram, and Sainikpuri reducing the load. Presently, only army officials and civilians working in the army establishments are allowed to use the road.
Again, trying to understand traffic signals at Jubilee bus station requires high-end education as signals seem to work at cross purposes. Signals turn red, amber and green with no logic and road users are left a confused lot.
Further up, the road which connects Secunderabad Club to Safilguda, Malkjagiri and Neredmet, is a complete mess and traffic here moves at a snail’s pace. In this section, the stretch of the road from Secunderabad Club to Ghanshyam supermarket can test the bone density of even the toughest men and women.
The increasing number of fast food restaurants and factory outlets from Vikrampuri to Karkhana and on to Trimulgherry is also said to be a reason for traffic blocks. These outlets have used their cellars meant for parking for shops and customers are left to park their vehicles along the road.
An important stop like Karkhana has no bus bay and commuters take shelter in the Satyam office nearby. In fact the road at Lothkunta leading to the Presidential abode of Rashtrapathi Nilayam has no bus bays, and RTC buses bunch up in the middle of the road leading to massive jams from Lal Bazar to Alwal. The absence of traffic policemen at major traffic intersections is one of the main reasons for traffic chaos in the evenings.
Source: TOI(Hyderabad epaper)
May 14th, 2007
Hyderabad: In connection with the re-dedication day and culmination of prajapatham programme at L B Stadium, traffic diversions and restrictions have been imposed in the city from 8 am to 6 pm on Monday. Traffic will not be allowed towards BJR statue from AR Petrol pump junction and will be diverted towards Nampally or Ravindra Bharathi.
Traffic from Abids and Gunfoundry side will not be allowed towards BJR statue and Basheerbagh junction. It will be diverted at Gunfoundry towards Chappel Road. Traffic from Basheerbagh junction to GPO, Abids, will be diverted at Basheerbagh junction towards Hyderguda and King Koti Road.
Traffic from Old MLA quarters towards Basheerbagh will be diverted towards Himayatnagar junction.
Traffic coming from Rajmohalla Road towards Old MLA Quarters will be diverted at Cemetery junction towards King Koti or Narayanguda. Traffic from Basheerbagh to traffic control room will be diverted at Basheerbagh junction towards Liberty.
Traffic from traffic control room towards Basheerbagh junction will be diverted towards Nampally Road. Following are the parking arrangements made by the traffic police: Vehicles coming from Mahbubnagar and Srisailam Road should be parked at Exhibition grounds. Vehicles from Nalgonda and Warangal must be parked at NTR stadium near Indira Park. Vehicles coming before 6 am from Nalgonda and Warangal districts will be allowed to park at Nizam college grounds.
Source: TOI(Hyderabad epaper)
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