Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Bhopal traffic police have been penalising people for overspeeding apart from not wearing helmets and seat belts during check drive. Ironically, many areas of Bhopal have no speed limit boards, giving tacit approval to people to drive and ride at high speed.
As per police records, 5,787 challans were issued to people for driving vehicles at a speed higher than permissible speed in last one year.
Officials said majority of cases were reported from Link Road and VIP Road. When Free Press visited areas, no speed limit boards were visible along three-kilometre-long Link Road.
While speed limit boards have been put up on VIP Road, they are almost invisible as they have been covered with tree branches. Other boards were in a bad shape making the speed limit mentioned on them illegible.
When contacted, some police officials gave absurd reasons. “Everyone knows that murders are illegal. But Section 302 of IPC need not to be displayed everywhere. Overspeeding is illegal and absence of the speed limit boards cannot be an excuse for driving fast,” an official said.
Some officials said that the speed limit was tracked through Intelligent Traffic Management System. However, sources said many cameras installed in the city were not calibrated.
When contacted, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (traffic) Sandeep Dixit said, “As per Gazette of India published in 2018, the speed limit for two-wheelers is 60 kilometres per hour. It is 70 km per hour for four-wheelers in cities.”
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