As a good citizen of the country, one must always follow the rules and regulations, especially when they are on the road. Whether it is a two-wheeler or a four-wheeler, being aware of the traffic rules determines how responsible you are. To ensure everyone is safe, the government often inflicts some punishment to anyone who does not encourage safe travels by following the traffic rules. Many times there is some amount of fine that is attached to the rule that the person breaks while driving. This fine is often updated every few years by the Government of India, and hence knowing the amount of penalty would only do good things for you.
Some rules are often different in each state, so if you are doing interstate travel in your vehicle, you must gather information on all these rules. Citizens have also witnessed people getting jailed because they did not follow a specific traffic rule. Thus, today, we decided to shed light on the serious topic of traffic rules. And while we were at it, we also decided to bring you the updated amount for the fines charged when a particular traffic rule is not followed on the road. We shall dive into everything but before that let us get a general idea of some of the simple yet essential road and traffic safety rules in India –
- Drive on your left-hand side of the road: especially when you are on the two-way roads, you must keep driving on the left side. With this, the oncoming traffic shall pass from your vehicle from the left side. NRIs keep this in mind!
- Do not forget to wear your seatbelts and helmets: Drivers and passengers must practice wearing a seatbelt or helmets (in the case of two-wheelers). It does not matter whether your car/motorbike ride is long or short. You must always wear the seatbelt/helmet no matter what.
- Maintain your speed limit: It is essential to maintain your speed when you are on the road full of traffic. Do not try to overtake in such situations and be responsible. When you are on the highway, look for the speed limit on road signs and drive according to that.
New Traffic Rules in India
There are a few new traffic rules that have recently been added to the older set. let us get details on them –
- Ban on the use of silencers on motorcycles: States such as Bengaluru and Pune have recently banned people from installing loud silencers in their motorbikes. This is because these silencers cause immense noise pollution.
- Watching videos while you are on the motorcycle is not allowed: Yes, now you cannot watch videos while you drive your motorcycles. All of this was done to avoid accidents due to distraction.
- You cannot park your vehicle in front of an emergency vehicle: Whether it is a fire truck or an ambulance, it is now illegal in India to obstruct these vehicles by parking your vehicle in front of them.
- Mobile phones are not allowed while driving in Uttarakhand: In Uttarakhand, you are not supposed to use your phones while you drive. If you do, you can be fined, and the authorities can even confiscate your mobiles for up to 24 hours.
- If someone breaks the same rules, he/she cannot be fined more than once: Until and unless the offense relates to overspeeding, the authorities can now not fine you for breaking the same rule. However, if you do not have the receipt of paying the previous fine, you can be fined again.
Updated Amount Of Fine Charged For Breaking Traffic Rules In India
- Driving without License: For this offense earlier, the fine that was charged was Rs. 500, but now the penalty is equivalent to Rs. 5000.
- Driving a vehicle when you are under the influence of alcohol: Earlier, the fine for this offense was Rs. 2000 but now it is exceeded to Rs. 10000 for first offense and Rs. 15000 for the second offense.
- Offenses related to accidents: There was no fine charged earlier for this, but now the authorities can charge you Rs. 5000 for first offense and Rs. 10000 for the second offense. You can even be jailed for six months to 1 year for this.
- Speeding and Racing: The older amount of fine lies at Rs. 500, but the new penalty is Rs. 5000 for first-time offense and Rs. 10000 for a second-time offense. You can again also be jailed if you fail to pay this amount of money.
- Driving without vehicle insurance: The penalty for this offense has been increased to Rs. 2000. If you are a second-time offender, you can be charged upto Rs—4000 for this. One can also be jailed for up to three months for not carrying the insurance papers of his/her vehicle.
- Not wearing a helmet or seatbelt: Many people in India do not wear a helmet, and now they will have to pay a fine of Rs. 1000 if they do not do so. Earlier people were only charged Rs. 100 for this. Also, you can now be charged Rs. 1000 if you do not wear your seatbelts in the car.
- Driving even when you do not meet the qualifications: The fine for this offense has been hiked from just Rs. 500 to a whopping Rs. 10000.
- Passenger Overloading: You cannot get away with this offense now as you will have to pay Rs. 1000 per passenger if your vehicle has more people than there are supposed to be in it.
- Juvenile Offense: If you are a juvenile who is driving a vehicle, you will have to pay a fine of Rs. 25000 or your guardians/parents will have to bear imprisonment for three years.
- Disobeying authorities: Citizens will have to pay a fine of Rs. 2000 if they do so. Earlier, they only have to pay Rs—500 for this offense.
There are many more new rules, and new fine amounts added year after year. To get details on them, you must keep checking the web from time to time. You can also try to visit the official sites that display information on these matters of road safety in India.