04 January,2025 09:00 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Representational Pic/File/iStock
The Regional Transport Office (RTO) has suspended the licences of two drivers for three months and seized their cars after an accident on the Mumbai Coastal Road, an official said on Saturday, reported the PTI.
One of the cars hit the sidewall of a tunnel on the northbound lane of the road between Marine Drive and Haji Ali during the race on Friday and its driver abandoned the vehicle and fled, causing a traffic jam, he said.
The two drivers were allegedly racing when the accident took place on the Mumbai Coastal Road, the official said, according to the PTI.
According to the Malabar Hill police official, they were informed about a vehicle blocking traffic inside the tunnel. The car was damaged and had no occupants. CCTV footage showed that the driver of the vehicle was allegedly racing with another car when it met with the accident, he said.
The official said they tracked down the duo, later identified as Jay Someshwar Narang Hublikar (19) and Mansoor Tofafarosh (22), and brought them to the police station. The car abandoned inside the tunnel was being driven by Hublikar, he said, as per the PTI.
While police service notices to the two and allowed them to go after booking them for rash driving, the RTO impounded the vehicles and suspended the licences of Hublikar and Tofafarosh for three months, the official said.
RTOs in Maharashtra to get radar-equipped interceptor vehicles to boost e-challan system
Meanwhile, the Maharashtra Motor Vehicles Department (MMVD) will procure interceptor vehicles equipped with radar systems capable of detecting multiple traffic violations simultaneously, news agency PTI reported.
The deployment of such radar-mounted interceptor vehicles, the first in any state in the country, is expected to significantly increase the number of e-challans issued by flying squads of Regional Transport Offices (RTO), in turn improving enforcement efficiency, said officials.
The radar-based system will be installed on 96 interceptor vehicles, the majority of which arrived about a month ago and are awaiting fitment, and will then be handed over to RTO flying squads in Maharashtra, the officials said.
According to PTI, 69 Mahindra-made interceptor vehicles have been delivered and are awaiting installation of the new system, while the procurement of 27 more is in process.
The procurement comes after MMVD introduced 187 AI-powered laser speed gun-mounted interceptor vehicles earlier this year using road safety fund.
(with PTI inputs)
