SHILLONG: The menace caused by the rise in road accidents has led the East Khasi Hills police to put forward issue of the lack of breath analyzers which are used to test consumption of alcohol by drivers.
This is a constraint the city police is facing to tackle drunken driving in different parts of the city.
“Though Shillong police is looking after a huge area, we at the moment have only two breath analyzers and these are not enough to keep a check on drunken driving”, East Khasi Hills SP M Kharkrang said.
However, he said a proposal has been sent to the Government to purchase more breath analyzers.
The Home Minister Roshan Warjri has admitted in the just concluded Assembly session that 463 persons were killed during the past five years from 2010 till 2014, and 1772 injured due to road accidents
Speaking on the menace, Kharkrang said that police used to catch all such accused by conducting late night raids in the city.
It may be mentioned that The Meghalaya Police Act, 2010 (Act No. 7 of 2011) effective from February 4, 2011 has also empowered the Police to enable it to function as an efficient, effective, people-friendly, impartial, transparent, honest, professional, accountable and responsive agency.
All police stations in Shillong City have been directed to utilise the Act effectively to check drunken driving, drinking in public places, drunken brawls and committing of nuisance in public places.
Notable features of this Act is that the perpetrator of the crime is, on conviction by the court, liable to a fine of Rs. 5,000/- and on subsequent conviction, fine of Rs. 10,000.
The Shillong police time and again conducts raid at different places in the city during late hours and many people were fined for driving under the influence of alcohol.
It is an open fact that many of the road accidents in the city takes place due to rash driving under the influence of liquor.
