Hold your horses in Karnataka, police warns FIR against overspeeding vehicles

Karnataka Police has warned strict action against overspeeding vehicles, including filing of First Information Report (FIR) in certain cases, with effect from Thursday, August 1. The new traffic rule will be implemented across the state to cut down on traffic violations as well as reduce road accidents that lead to fatality. Karnataka Police has warned to slap cases under the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against vehicle owners flouting the new traffic rule in the state.

Overspeeding is considered to be one of the biggest killers on the roads of Karnataka. Alok Kumar, Additional Director General of Police (Traffic and Road Safety), said that a Supreme Court monitoring committee on road safety has informed that overspeeding is rampant in the state and is leading to loss of lives. According to the police, nearly 90 per cent deaths in road accidents that took place in Karnataka in 2022 were attributed to overspeeding.

Kumar said overspeeding is rampant in the state, especially on newly-laid highways and expressways like the Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway which saw more than 150 vehicles at speed of over 130 kmph in a single day. "From August 1, FIR will be registered against those driving vehicles above 130 kmph anywhere in Karnataka for rash and dangerous driving," Kumar said. He said case will be filed under section 281 for rash and negligent driving against those violating the traffic rule.

Kumar cited a recent road accident near Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprise earlier this month, where three people were killed after being hit by a vehicle speeding at 160 kmph. He also said that 120 kmph is the top speed limit anywhere in the state. According to him, the speed limit on national highways across the country as of now is 100 kmph.

Kumar also said that enforcing the speed limit rule will be a challenge for the police. To tackle the issue, the police plans to take several measures like installing speed laser guns along the Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway. The police will use Automatic Number Plate Recognition Cameras to click pictures of overspeeding vehicles along with their speeds. So far, the police has deployed 155 speed laser guns in different parts of the state.

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