Helmet less teenager dies in bike crash, friend lands in ICU; Two pillion riders die in two different accidents; 20-year-old pillion rider killed in Undri road accident…
Newspapers scream these headlines day after day, campaigns are undertaken, awareness drives worked upon, yet all this seems to fall on deaf ears in this city. Pune’s two wheeler riders believe that accidents do not happen to them and helmets in any case only ruins their hairstyles!
What’s worse? In a city like ours, with close to 25 lakh (till March 2017) two-wheelers, only 16% of the riders wear helmets, while close to half of them, did not feel the need for pillion riders to wear helmets at all.
Wearing a helmet decreases the risk of severe injuries by 72% and that of death by 39%.
India’s Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, makes it mandatory for both driver and pillion to wear a BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) certified helmet that is securely strapped.
Just 16 out of every 100 bikers wear helmets while driving, suggests a survey by Parisar, a city-based civil society organization.
The city that has as many as 700 two-wheelers registered everyday, also boasts of the highest number of accidents involving two-wheelers in the country.
This is ample indication of the lack of enforcement by the authorities with respect to the helmet rule. Interestingly, several riders in the city we spoke to were not even aware that the helmet rule extends to the pillion rider as well.
Rani Biswas, a salesgirl, says, “I have been riding my scooty for the past six years now. I admit that I didn’t like wearing a helmet earlier, but now with all the helmet drives, I have thought over it.
Everyday, I hear about the death of riders in accidents that could have been avoided if they had a helmet on. Hence, I have started wearing one. But frankly speaking, I wasn’t aware that the person riding pillion is also supposed to wear a helmet,” she adds.
In the interest of the safety of pillion riders, the Karnataka government will soon ban pillion riders on two-wheelers which have engines smaller than 100cc, say media reports. The manufacturer will not be allowed to put a pillion on the vehicle and the buyer cannot make after-market alterations to these vehicles.
Speaking to us, Kiran M. Nabat, Traffic Policeman, says, “In my 12-hour duty, I see more than 50,000 two-wheelers crossing this traffic signal every day. Out of these, I hardly see any pillion rider wearing a helmet. The sad part is, even the driver doesn’t wear a helmet. They just want to get away by dodging the police, or are okay with paying the fine. According to law, the pillion rider is also supposed to wear a helmet, but here the drivers themselves are not wearing one!
The Pune police, in co-operation with the management of various colleges of Pune, have initiated a drive to mandate helmets for two-wheeler owners, which is working successfully in some places,” he adds.
I have witnessed a horrible incident where a two- wheeler driver crashed into a lorry and the pillion was thrown off and fatally hit his head. He could have been saved if he had a helmet on,” shares Mahesh who works at an Automobile garage.
“Having said so, I think it is entirely our fault. If I tell anyone to sit behind me but with a helmet, they will simply make fun of me.
I have many friends who do so, but sometimes their reluctance to wear a helmet leaves me with no option, than to leave the discussion,” Mahesh adds.
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Reach her at loveleen@pune365.com or tweet @KaurKaur18
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