The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Police crack down on overloading in share-autos in city

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Friday, Nov 03, 2006
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Police crack down on overloading in share-autos in city

L. Srikrishna

Officers book cases against 600 vehicles on a single day

CHENNAI : In a single day, the city police booked cases against 600 autos on charges of overloading the vehicles with passengers.

Under the motor vehicles rules, share autos can carry only six people including the driver, but police found more than 10 passengers in many vehicles.

The violations were more in the suburbs, though there were cases of over-loading in the city also.

Two days ago, an auto rickshaw carrying 18 passengers in neighbouring Kancheepuram district got caught on the railway track near Kancheepuram, leading to the death of all those in the vehicle. Similarly, in Puzhal, a similar accident involving a sand-laden lorry claimed two lives and eight others travelling in the share auto were injured.

Following this, city police carried out a drive against overloading and on Wednesday alone, they booked 600 cases.

Speaking to The Hindu , Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Sunil Kumar said the drive would be intensified in the coming days. Though there was no case of driving without licence, overloading was a matter of concern. He wanted the travelling public to realise the risk taken by them in travelling in overloaded share autos.

However, share auto owners in the extension areas said that during the rush hour, "We have little option but to let the passengers into the autos. Despite our appeals, they board the loaded autos. When the drivers refused to take them, it ends in wordy quarrels. Instead of harassing the share auto operators alone, the police should regulate the crowd," they pointed out.

A traffic inspector on the 100-feet road said that unless the laws were made more stringent, the problem could not be controlled. The courts should also punish them severely, he said.

Instead of rushing to hand over relief after a fatal crash, the public should be educated about the consequences of travelling in an overloaded auto, a lawyer said.

Meanwhile, the Association of Chennai Share Autorickshaw Owners has said the autorickshaw involved in the Kancheepuram accident was not a share-autorickshaw, but a regular three-wheeled auto.

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