Bihar: Auto driver imposed with fine for not wearing seat belt

Though an auto doesn't consist of a seat belt, still an auto driver here was imposed with a fine of Rs 1,000 for not wearing one while riding his auto, said a police official.

An auto driver on Saturday had to pay a minimum fine for not wearing a seat-belt while riding in Saraiya, Muzaffarpur in Bihar.

"The auto driver was asked to pay a minimum challan, which was, for not wearing a seat belt as he was an extremely poor man. So, he was asked to pay Rs 1,000 only. In order to impose the minimum penalty amount, he was imposed with the lowest challan amount. This was a mistake but it was done just to impose a minimum penalty on the driver," said Ajay Kumar Station House Officer (SHO), Saraiya.

Traffic offenders in various states across the nation are consistently being slapped with huge fines since the new Motor Vehicles Act has enhanced the penalties for driving errors.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had notified the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act 2019 last month and it was implemented in many states of India from September 1.