Underage driving is one of the biggest nuisances on the public roads in India. In the past, many underage drivers have been involved in accidents and some of them have even turned out to be fatal.
With the new amended MV Act, the government increased the fine amount 50 times from Rs 500 to Rs 25,000. Also, new law has been introduced that can be used against the parents to put them in jail for up to 3 years.
Still, there are many underage children who can be seen roaming on the roads without any fear. A similar case from Lucknow has become viral on the Internet and the cops have issued a court fine of Rs 30,000 to the owner of the motorcycle.
Video of 8-year old riding motorcycle becomes viral: Father gets Fined Rs 30,000
The incident happened in the Kakori Police Station, Lucknow. The child has been identified as 8 years old, Shanu. The height of the child is so small that his feet are not even reaching the ground. He can be seen wearing an oversized helmet without any safety strap.
The video also shows that the bike that he is using has big canisters of milk mounted in the rear and small can mounted on the leg guard in the front. It seems like the kid is out for delivery of the milk and he has been doing this for a while now.
Shanu can be seen riding the bike confidently but his feet are much higher than the ground. In a situation where the motorcycle gets imbalanced and the rider needs to put the feet down will turn out to be a great disaster. It is extremely dangerous to do such kind of stunts on the public roads and it can cause massive accidents.
The video was shot by a passerby and was uploaded to various social media channels, where it became viral. This is when the cops booked the owner of this vehicle after tracing the number of the motorcycle.
Punendra Singh, SP, Traffic Police, Lucknow said in the video that the owner of the bike has already been booked under the new act. After the implementation of the new amended MV Act, the fine for underage driving has been increased from Rs 500 to Rs 25,000. Also, the parents will be fined an additional Rs 5,000 for letting their child operate a vehicle.
Further, the court can also award a sentence of up to 3 years to the parents for allowing the child to drive or ride a motorcycle. Since this is a court-challan, a formal hearing will happen and the court will decide the final fine amount and jail time for the culprit.
Underage driving and riding are extremely dangerous. It should be noted that even the insurance companies do not honour any claim if the rider is not legally old enough to drive. In India, gearless two-wheeler licenses are granted to people above 16 years of age while the licenses of regular two-wheelers and cars is issued after the age of 18 years old.
Written By – Shantonil Nag, Source – Cartoq.
