TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, expressing his displeasure over the manner the police had handled the accident case in which a drunk driver driving on the wrong side of the road had seriously injured two youth, has directed the police to submit a detailed report to him.
“The recent Campal accident is an eye opener. Police has registered it as a traffic accident which I don’t agree with. I have sought a detail investigation report from police,” the chief minister told the House on a question raised by independent legislator Naresh Sawal and others who expressed their concern over the increasing number of accidents, especially at night.
Saying that he felt that this was a serious case of drunk driving and admitting that driving while drunk had become an issue of major concern, Parrikar announced that he would order the stationing of alcometers outside bars, restaurants, pubs and casinos. He also said that bars and restaurants open after 11 pm are to some extent responsible for drunk driving and subsequently road accidents.
Two young men were badly injured when they were mowed down by a drunk driver speeding down the wrong side of D B Road, around 1 am on Sunday morning. The driver, Shobhika Gaur, 30, was speeding from Campal towards Panjim via the wrong lane. Within few hours of her arrest, she was released on bail bond of Rs 10,000.
Parrikar admitted that most of the accidents reported at night are due to drunken driving and felt that bars and restaurants that are open till 4 am are responsible for this. He said that henceforth the bars seeking permission to remain open post 11 pm would have to take responsibility and ensure that the driver of the vehicle does not drink.
The chief minister assured the house that by next assembly session more alcometers and more force would be deployed outside bars, restaurants, pubs and casinos. He was speaking while responding to the figures raised by independent legislator Vijao Sardessai who said that in the year 2013, 179 people were checked with alcometers while only 70 were booked.
“I feel that the transport minister (Ramkrishna Sudin Dhavalikar) rather than demanding a ban on pub culture, should concentrate more on drunken driving culture. He needs to focus on this,” Sardessai said.
As per the government record, there are total 50 accident prone zones in the state.
