Helmets for pillion riders should be optional, says legislator

The Goa government's plan to make helmet compulsory for riders as well as pillion riders from October 2 onwards has met with opposition from within the ruling disposition itself.
The Goa state government cannot implement Section 129 of the Motor Vehicles Act making helmet compulsory for riders and pillion riders until they issue a special notification.
"The Goa state government has not issued any such notification," Lavu Mamlatdar, a ruling party legislator, told PTI here today.
Incidently, Mamlatdar is with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), a political outfit represented by Goa state transport minister Ramakrishna Dhavalikar, who had announced on the floor of the Goa legislative assembly recently, that helmets would be compulsory for riders as well as pillion riders.

The Goa state government had announced recently that helmets would be compulsory from October 2, on all roads, including city lanes.
Mamlatdar, a policeman-turned-politician, said that helmets for riders should be made compulsory, but it should be optional for pillion riders, since there are several factors about Goa which makes it impractical for pillion riders to wear helmets.

"The climate in Goa is not similar to Delhi or other places where there is a similar compulsion," he said.
The legislator said that the Goa state government should instead try and work on awareness about the headgear rather than force pillion riders to wear it.

The Goa state transport department has already begun a drive to make people aware about the rule making helmets compulsory which would be implemented from October 2 in the state.