Rs 1000 for jumping signals, among others in revised fines for violations

New Delhi: Higher and stricter traffic penalties came into effect across the country from Sunday under the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which was cleared by parliament last month. The new law aims to instil fear in people who violate traffic rules, since an "intelligent traffic system" will monitor offences, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said last month, reported NDTV.

As many as 63 clauses of the newly amended Motor Vehicle Act has been implemented and motorists when they are caught violating traffic norms will cough up heavier penalties. The new Act has substantially increased penalties for traffic violations such as drunk driving, driving without helmets.

The amended Motor Vehicles Act also takes into account rules governing cab aggregators such as Uber and Ola. However, the regulations for cab aggregators mentioned in the Act and a few other measures will take a few months more to be implemented, according to transport ministry officials, reported Hindustan Times.

Here’s a list of updates from the Motor Vehicle Act of 2019:

• Driving without a seat-belt can now be penalised with a fine of Rs 1,000, which was earlier Rs 100. Use of mobile phones while driving can invite a fine between Rs 1,000-5,000. Earlier it was Rs 1,000.
• For drunk driving, the fine has been hiked from Rs 2,000 to Rs 10,000. Drivers will be fined Rs 10,000 for not giving way to emergency vehicles like ambulance and fire brigade.
• Under the new law, fine for driving without licence has been hiked from Rs 500 to Rs 5,000. For driving despite disqualification, the fine has been raised from Rs 500 to Rs 10,000. Taxi aggregators violating driving licences will be fined up to Rs 1 lakh.
• Overspeeding can now invite a penalty between Rs 1,000 - Rs 2,000. The penalty has been increased from Rs 400 to Rs 1,000 for light motor vehicles and Rs 2,000 for medium passenger vehicles.
• For driving without insurance, there will be a fine of Rs 2,000; those driving without helmets will have to shell out Rs 1,000 and can face three-month suspension of their licence. Overloading of vehicles will draw a penalty of Rs 20,000
• The provisions of the new MV Act also recommend that the parents of a juvenile caught for traffic offences should be jailed for three years and fined Rs 25,000. The new law states that a juvenile accused of violations would be tried under the Juvenile Justice Act.