Wearing seat belts an unknown trait in M’laya

SHILLONG: Reckless driving on congested roads, disobedience of traffic rules and non-adherence to safety norms – all this and more have been contributing to the growing number of road accidents in Shillong and across other places in Meghalaya.
At a time when road accidents are on the rise in Shillong and its suburbs, it is evident that very few people in Shillong are accustomed to the habit of wearing seat belts while driving.
Safety norms make it compulsory for drivers and the front seat passenger to wear seat belts when a vehicle is moving. However, the ongoing trend in Shillong is than no one cares to wear the seat belts despite rules stipulating otherwise.
Be it private vehicle owners or local cabbies or Government-run buses, all drivers blatantly defy the law putting at risk their own safety as well as the safety of others.
Though road safety awareness programmes are regularly organized in Shillong, yet not much emphasis is laid on wearing seat belts. Given the number of road accidents in Shillong and the large number of fatalities recorded each year, large-scale awareness is necessary to educate the masses about the importance of seat belts.
It may be noted that in neighbouring Guwahati, the traffic police, recognizing the importance of seat belts, have made it compulsory for all drivers to wear seat belts and violations are dealt with in the form of hefty fines.
When contacted, traffic police officers in Shillong admitted that not wearing seat belt was a violation of the Motor Vehicle Act. They added that Shillong traffic police was making an effort to enforce people to wear seat belts.