Underage driving is a petty offence and fails to focus their energy and manpower in curbing the menace
Picture for representational purpose
Coimbatore: For school students, it is fun and fashion to zip on a high-powered motor bike to school. For their status-conscious parents, it is a matter of pride. But little do they realise that it is a tragedy waiting to happen. A few days ago, two boys, Mohammed Nishar from Karumbukadai and Ibrahim from Madina Nagar, were returning from morning prayers with another friend on a two-wheeler. They lost control and rammed into a lamp post near Karumbukadai. The two boys died on the spot, while their friend is battling for life at the Coimbatore Medical College and Hospital. (CMCH).
It’s time for parents, students, institutions and departments concerned to realise that unrestricted under age driving by school students is a road to disaster. “Concerted awareness drives are the need of the hour to stop under age driving. Parents give away two-wheelers to their children willingly, which they consider as a status issue. Firstly, students should be made to understand the seriousness of the offence they commit,” said former chief traffic warden A. Mahesh.
The law enforcing agencies assume that underage driving is only a petty offence and fail to focus their energy and manpower in curbing the menace. “Increasing use of two-wheelers by students show that the public too lack self discipline. Youngsters should never expect others to correct us by imposing the law, but should inculcate the habit of getting disciplined on their own,” he said.
Mr Mahesh said that the police records reveal that most of the accident victims are in the age group of 25 to 35 years of age. “Involvement of students in mishaps is only less when compared to those above their age in Coimbatore. However it’s always better to use mass transport system as it would also help in decongestion of roads,” he added. Meanwhile some schools have begun to crack the whip on students coming by two-wheelers to their institution.
“We don’t permit students coming by two wheelers to our school over the last ten years. If we come to know that students park their vehicles elsewhere before entering the campus, then we summon their parents and advise them to discourage their children from using the vehicle. Also during every parents-teachers meet, our staff stress the parents not to give vehicles to their children. Moreover, newspaper cuttings on accidents involving minors are being pasted on the notice board to create awareness among students on the dangers of driving vehicles,” said Mr P Mohan, correspondent of National Model School on Avinashi Road.
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