Bengaluru traffic police have seized more than 1,156 modified motorcycle silencers in just three days, as part of a special drive.
Happy with the success of this campaign, which began after cops were flooded with complaints of noise pollution, traffic police are now planning a sustainable campaign.
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Although campaigns against defective silencers are not new in the city, the renewed campaign has a catch. The fine for using a defective silencer is Rs 100 and this hasn’t been a great deterrent, according to the police. To work around this problem, cops are booking cases under a different, stringent provision of the law.
According to the Motor Vehicles Act, alteration of any vehicle beyond the original manufacturer’s specifications, is a violation. The punishment for this violation is a court-prescribed fine, forfeiture of equipment and a case slapped on the rider.
The fine could be as high as Rs 2,000, which is more than the cost of many modified silencers.
While cops consider the new plan effective, not everyone is happy. Many riders called out the traffic police for not booking high-end vehicles like Harry Davidson, Triumph and other imported brands sporting higher decibel silencers.
Finding an Alternative Provision in Law
The campaign against defective silencers took prominence in 2016 when Bengaluru cops booked 1951 cases. As the craze for bikes in the city increased, so did the number of cases. In 2017, 5,053 cases were booked and in 2018, in seven months, the total number of cases reached 3,777.
Despite traffic police’s campaign, the menace of the loud silencers didn’t come down. “We realised the Rs 100 fine was not a deterrent. Many would pay the fine and continue riding. When we looked up the Motor Vehicles Act, we realised that any modified silencer amounts to alteration of the vehicle. So, we started sending bikers to court,” said a senior traffic police officer.
The Law
Cops are using Section 190 (2) in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, to seize the silencers and slap higher fines.
Section 190 (2) states: “Any person who drives or causes or allows to be driven, in any public place a motor vehicle, which violates the standards prescribed in relation to road safety, control of noise and air-pollution, shall be punishable for the first offence with a fine of one thousand rupees and for any second or subsequent offence with a fine of two thousand rupees.”
The alteration of the vehicle is defined in Section 52 of the Motor Vehicle Act. Which states: “No owner of a motor vehicle shall so alter the vehicle that the particulars contained in the certificate of registration are at variance with those originally specified by the manufacturer.”
This section, in simple terms, means that any alteration over and above the original product is illegal.
Riders Unhappy
The new section used by Bengaluru cops, however, comes with some loopholes. The criteria for booking vehicles for alteration is changing the original design of the motorcycle.
However, the decibel levels for several imported vehicles such a Harley Davidson, Triumph and several sports bikes are on the higher end, but they don’t come under the specific section of Motor Vehicles Act, as they are original manufacturers’ design. And riders are not happy about it, especially the Royal Enfield fans.
“Bengaluru police, agreed that you are focused on catching Royal Enfields with modified silencers, but why aren’t you catching the Harley Davidson, triumph, KTM bikes who are equally noisy with company silencers? A simple 100cc Yamaha RX 100 motorcycle with no mufflers can cause more noise pollution than your accepted pollution norms. Make rules that are equal to everyone please!”Nikhith Thomas, on Bengaluru traffic police’s Facebook page.
Another commuter even argued that two-stroke autorickshaws contributed to the noise pollution more than motorcycles.
To the barrage of questions, the police replied that any silencer emitting 80 decibels will be considered as violation. However, senior officers admitted no cases have been booked against any imported vehicle so far.
Spare Parts Markets Thrive
While several riders in Bengaluru have surrendered their modified silencers to the cops to avoid the court, the spare parts market in the city hasn’t seen a drop in the numbers. According to shop owners, despite the crackdown, bike silencers are selling like hot cakes.
Shopkeepers in JC Colony, Bengaluru’s auto spare parts hub, said the demand for modified silencers continue to thrive. “We sell around 7-10 silencers a day. The numbers haven’t come down. People generally change back to old silencers during such campaigns and replace them once the police drive over,” said one of the shopkeepers.
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