Students ride bikes, cars without licenses

Daily chaos prevalent outside schools

Tahir Mushtaq

JAMMU, Oct 19: Proving a threat to people and themselves school going students ride bikes and cars without driving license has become a common scene in the city.

It not only puts the life of people in danger but at times have led to tragic accidents leaving many families grieved. Whereas the traffic department observing these riders silently taking no action against them.

The fault is not only the students but also from their parents’ side who allowed them with bikes neglecting the norms created by traffic department.

These underage students not only violating the rules by riding motorcycles without license but also driving without a helmet, driving under the influence, and other documents jumping traffic signals, using mobile phones while driving.

Many times their rash driving resulted dangerous accidents besides these underage students do stunts on roads, risk their own and other people’s lives.

Balder Sharma a local said the authorities should take some acting against such erring riders.

“The traffic police needs to deal sternly with underage riders. Increased penalties, seizing vehicles of violators, traffic awareness workshops for school students are some of the ways by which this menace can be controlled” Sharma said.

He maintained that the parents should also need to understand how dangers it is to drive without proper documents.

In absence of required parking space, private vehicles continue to create traffic mess outside the Government Women College (GWC) and Presentation Convent School, Gandhi Nagar. Daily there is huge jam outside educational institutions during the morning and afternoon.

Traffic can be a nightmare during the morning drop-off and afternoon pick-up, with drivers mounting pavements and narrowly missing themselves or their children as they travel along the Satwari-Bikram Chowk road.

When contacted Assistant Regional Transport Officer (ARTO), Jammu Saleem Ahmed said that the traffic police continuously doing challans of any such underage student who ride bike without license.

“Expect this department is unable to control them to ride the bikes as this is also the responsibility of their parents not to purchase the vehicles for them” he added.