Deny bikes to minors: Min tells parents

Hyderabad: Transport Minister P Mahender Reddy today suggested that the parents should stop giving two-wheelers to their minor children of teen age to avoid road accidents.
Launching 28th National Road Safety Week celebrations at KBR Park along with Transport Dept Principal Secretary Sunil Sharma and other officials, the minister said fatal road accidents could be avoided with awareness among the public. The parents will have to face stringent action if they failed to prevent their children from riding bikes and other two-wheelers, he warned.
“Special vigilance is put in place at accident-prone roads and national highways. Everyone should follow road safety norms and feel it a social responsibility to ensure that road accidents do not occur. We are taking steps to ensure that liquor and wine sale is stopped along the highways. We need to protect our lives by being extra cautious on roads which are vulnerable and prone to the accidents”, he said.
Mahender Reddy said the Transport Dept officials have identified such accident spots on the roads, national and state highways, he said. Expressing concern over 1.50 lakh road accident deaths across the nation every year, including 7,000 in Telangana, he stressed the need for careful driving following road safety norms. He said world standard drivers training institute is being set up with Rs 18 crore Central funds at Siricilla. Similar institutes will be set up at districts to reduce accidents and create awareness among the people through massive publicity, he maintained.
The minister asked the petrol bunks to deny petrol to customers, who were not wearing helmets. The government is firm to prevent the road accidents through promotion of short films, awareness programs, road safety clubs at educational institutions.
Police Commissioner Mahender Reddy said a State wide penalty policy is going to come up across the State for road safety. Violation of norms or road safety will attract fine from the people, he said. (NSS)