A senior officer of the Metropolitan Traffic Police Division (MTPD) on Friday announced stringent enforcement of laws to bring order and discipline on the chaotic roads of the city as part of the Home Ministry’s traffic reforms campaign.

Speaking to journalists at a press conference, the Division’s Senior Superintendent of Police Basanta Kumar Panta said, “Traffic police officers will strictly monitor lane-driving, give priority to zebra crossing to ensure safe, disciplined and systematic traffic management.”Panta said the Division would strictly implement the 82-point Home Administration Reform Plan of the Home Ministry and 10-point priorities of the Division.

All types of public transport vehicles operating in Kathmandu will compulsorily have to display their registration number inside the vehicle. This initiative is for the convenience of passengers following increasing incidence of people forgetting their personal belongings and other items in vehicles, said Panta.

Traffic police would take strong action against the drivers and vehicles violating traffic rules, he said. The department has already started strict monitoring of taxi drivers not installing printers to hand passengers fare invoice, as well as plying without digital meters and refusing passengers.

The Division would also launch traffic awareness programmes in various schools, colleges and organisations. Kathmandu has 1.132 million vehicles. Road accidents claimed 149 lives in Kathmandu, according to data provided by the Division. The Division has booked 378,927 vehicles for various traffic violations in the 10 months of the currentfiscal year.

The Division formally announced its decision to book public transport vehicles carrying passengers exceeding the prescribed seating capacity.The Division has announced fines up to Rs 5,000 for owners of public vehicles who defy the new rules.MTPD Spokesperson Nabin Raj Rai said, the traffic police would increase its surveillance in various parts of the city. “We had started this drive earlier, but now onwards our officers will strictly enforce laws.”The Division’s newfound resolve to enforce law and order seriously on city streets would discipline private and public vehicle owners as well as pedestrians who

have the habit of crossing roads from anywhere and everywhere.

The Division’s decision to monitor strictly the capacity of public buses will bring relief to passengers. Almost all drivers of public buses pack passengers exceeding the vehicle’s capacity. The spectacle of commuters hanging for dear life on tiny footboard of tempos, during rush hours, may look comical, but such practices often have fatal consequences.

(This report includes substantial text from Rastriya Samachar Samiti)