Karnataka traffic police’s decision to register FIR against drivers who exceed the speed limit of 130 km per hour came into effect on Thursday. The drivers, if found over-speeding will booked under the offence of rash and dangerous driving under Section 281 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
This decision, announced on Monday, was taken because over-speeding caused about 90 per cent of fatal accidents in the state in 2022, reported PTI quoting a senior police official.
Additional Director General of Police (Traffic and Road Safety) Alok Kumar said, “From August 1, FIR will be registered against those driving vehicles above 130 km per hour anywhere in Karnataka for rash and dangerous driving.”
Kumar added that 155 persons sped at more than 130 kmph on the Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway on July 25.
The drivers will be booked under section 281 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for rash and negligent driving and once the speed limit is beyond 120 km per hour, it becomes rash or dangerous driving.
Earlier, the Supreme Court monitoring committee took note of the rampant rise in over-speeding and loss of lives due to it in Karnataka, thus demanding the state government to take action regarding this issue.
ADGP Alok Kumar said the new rule will be applicable to all roads and not just limited to highways. The police aim to bring this rule into effect with the help of speed laser guns and Automatic Number Plate Recognition Cameras which would record vehicle speeds and their images. Laser guns have been currently installed all along the Bengaluru-Mysuru Highway. The police also distributed 155 speed laser guns, reported PTI. Kumar added that it is slightly more challenging during night time to record vehicle speeds.
Currently, the speed limit on national highways across the country is 100 km per hour while the state and other highways have lower speed limits. The speed limit is 120 km per hour on Expressways, which is the maximum speed limit with which a vehicle is allowed to ply in the country.