In a special drive against drunk driving, the Commerce and Transport Department has suspended the driving licences (DLs) of 73 persons for driving their vehicles under the influence of liquor.
This was revealed during a review by the Commerce and Transport Secretary Bishnupada Sethi on the measures taken to reduce fatal accidents on roads and highways.
.During the special drive on Wednesday, 150 people were detected driving under the influence of liquor. In accordance with the directives of the Supreme Court Committee on Road Safety, 73 driving licenses (DLs) were suspended, a senior official of the department said.
The officials also filed 128 Prosecution Reports in courts seeking imprisonment of the offenders. During the special drive, 29 drivers and 65 vehicles were detained.
In addition to the drunken driving, during the drive 188 other traffic rule violations were detected and e-challans were also issued against these violators.
As per the provisions of Motor Vehicles Act, in case of drunken driving, first-time offenders would face imprisonment up to six months or fine up to Rs 10, 000.
The second offence, if within two years, can lead to up to two years prison term or fine of Rs 15,000.
As per the statistics, about 10 per cent of the accidents in the State occur due to drunken driving.
The Special drives would continue to penalise the traffic rule violators throughout the year, said the official.
