The Kerala police have taken stern action against a car driver in Thrissur by imposing a hefty fine of ₹2.5 lakh for obstructing the path of an ambulance.
A video of the dashcam footage from the incident went viral on social media, showing the insensitive behaviour of the car driver.
The two-minute-long dashcam footage shows the ambulance following a Maruti Suzuki car with its siren blaring and continuously honking on a narrow, two-lane road.
The car driver turned a deaf ear to the blaring siren and refused to make way for the ambulance. Apparently, the driver blocked every attempt made by the ambulance to overtake the car.
After the video surfaced online, social media users heavily criticised the car driver’s behavior.
As per reports, the vehicle owner was fined for not pulling over to allow an ambulance to pass, hindering the duties of an authority authorized under the Motor Vehicles Act, and failing to carry a valid Pollution Under Control Certificate (PUCC).
Under Section 194E of the Motor Vehicles Act, any individual driving a motor vehicle who fails to pull over to the side of the road upon the approach of a fire service vehicle, ambulance, or other emergency vehicle specified by the State Government, may face punishment of up to six months imprisonment, a fine of ₹10,000, or both.
Reacting to the viral video, a user tagging Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, wrote, “Can you kindly ensure that as part of road safety rules and laws, giving way to ambulances is emphasized, and that those who don’t comply are punishable? Yesterday I witnessed a similar incident where an ambulance driver had to honk the horn to ask for space.”
“Such inhumane and selfish acts must be a non-bailable offense. He must rot in jail,” added another.
