The Maharashtra government has decided to withdraw the ‘No helmet, no fuel’ rule, transport minister Diwakar Raote said after petrol pump owners and two-wheelers’ owners opposed the decision.
Instead, petrol pump operators will now have to compile information on those two-wheeler riders who do not wear a helmet and send it to the local Regional Transport Officers (RTOs) at regular intervals.
Protesting against having to send information on erring riders to RTO officials, petrol pump operators have suggested the state government to put CCTV cameras in the petrol pumps to catch the riders who disobey the rule.
The ‘No helmet, no fuel’ rule was initially set to be implemented from 1 August, to reduce the casualties in road accidents.
These rules put the onus on petrol pump owners who had threatened to go on strike. The Opposition had raised the issue in the Lower House, saying it was against public sentiments.
Former Deputy Chief minister and Nationalist Congress Party leader Ajit Pawar said though the government’s intention was sincere, the policy was not practical.
Groups in Pune are preparing to make helmets available outside petrol pumps for Re 1, just for refuelling purposes. This will defeat the original purpose.Ajit Pawar, Leader of Congress and Former Deputy CM
Besides making helmets compulsory, we wanted to tap ways to get riders to wear them, and hence announced the compulsion of helmet-for-fuel. Our intention was positive as the percentage of two-wheeler riders who don’t wear helmets and meet with fatal accidents is high.Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra
The government will look into measures to increase awareness among riders, he said.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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