JOIN USThose who had made the rash decision to drink and drive this weekend, faced a bitter pill in the form of numerous checkpoints as part of a special police drive against drunken driving on Saturday night.
Teams of the City traffic police were out in full strength on the streets from 9 pm, and in all, claimed to have booked 963 cases of drunken driving – 515 in the East division and 448 in the West division.
M A Saleem, Additional Commissioner (Traffic and Security) told Deccan Herald that the special drive was an integral part of the campaign for pedestrian safety. “Police have been conducting such drives for the last month, especially on weekends when incidents of drunken driving typically increase,” he said.
The drive on Saturday continued till the early morning hours of Sunday, across all 44 traffic police stations in the City. All senior officers, including DCPs were out on the streets as part of the drive.
According to Saleem, police have already booked nearly 9,500 cases of drunken driving in the City this month. “We are not collecting fines on the spot, but are instead seizing vehicles,” he said. “Those caught, have to appear before court and pay a fine as per the directions of the court.”