Driver Who Tore Clothes, Mystery Man Who Disappeared
Hyderabad: Police officers working at drunk vehicle checkpoints did not like the antics of drunk drivers as the city entered the new year. The night was largely incident-free and police of Hyderabad, Siberabad and Rachakonda tri-commissions penalized 2,731 people for drunken driving.
The figures reflect a drop of 527 cases compared to the 3,258 cases recorded during the previous year’s festivities. City police commissioner VC Sajjanar attributed this decline to a week-long awareness campaign and a crackdown on narcotics and drunk driving.
Sajjanar later tweeted: “Thanks Hyderabad for an uneventful New Year.” “Hyderabad ne dikhaya – celebration ho sakta, building risk ke. Hamesha yaad rakho – nasha aur steering ek izleh nai,” the commissioner said. “Nasha + steering = khatra.”
The special enforcement drive, which lasted from 7 pm on Wednesday to 3 am on Thursday, resulted in 1,198 cases in Hyderabad, 928 in Cyberabad and 605 in Malkajgiri.
In nine districts of Hyderabad commissionerate, two-wheeler drivers were the major violators with 1,042 cases, followed by 105 auto drivers and 51 autorickshaw operators.
Police found 17 people in the city were driving with dangerously high levels of alcohol, exceeding 300 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of blood.
At Malkajgiri borders, maximum violations were reported from LB Nagar, Vanasthalipuram, Uppal and Kushaiguda, with eight persons crossing the 300 BAC limit.
The night was also marked by the intense drama created by drunk drivers caught at many checkpoints. During checks in Nampally, a youth fell at the feet of the officers and demanded to be released. He was taken to the police station.
In Malakpet, a drunk young man requested the police to drop him home in a patrol vehicle after his vehicle was seized.
In Vanasthalipuram, a man lay down in the middle of the road and refused to move. He claimed that he was not drunk and that the police attacked him. He then fled, prompting the traffic police to lodge a complaint with the Vanasthalipuram police.
A senior traffic police official explained that the person was not the driver, but a colleague of the driver who was caught drunk. “His partner started to cause trouble,” the official said.
He stated that police personnel, anticipating the possibility of problems during intensive checks, also assisted traffic teams.
D. Joel Davis, joint superintendent of traffic, Hyderabad, said the main aim is to deter motorists from drunk driving and ensure that revelers reach their destination safely.
In Cyberabad, the highest number of cases, 102, were recorded in Miyapur traffic police limits, followed by RC Puram (84), Raidurgam (77) and Gachibowli (74). Among the criminals were 695 two-wheeler riders. Drivers aged 21-30 constituted the largest criminal group with 477 people.
Cyberabad police said the New Year celebrations went off without any major incident due to close monitoring by senior officials and enforcement at the field level. A free shuttle service operated from major party centers to metro stations and taxi pickup points helped reduce congestion.
