Take action against KSRTC, KURTC buses exhibiting advertisements: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court recently directed the officers of the Motor Vehicles Department and the State Police to take action against vehicles operated by the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) and the Kerala Urban Road Transport Corporation (KURTC), that exhibit advertisements causing undue distraction to pededstrians and other drivers..A division bench of Justices Anil K Narendran and P G Ajithkumar noted that affixing such ads on the bodies of vehicles violates the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules as well as the Court's directions in Saji KM v Deputy Transport Commissioner."Action shall also be taken for exhibiting advertisements, figures, etc. causing distraction to the drivers of other vehicles and also cyclists and pedestrians on public road, flouting the statutory provisions referred to hereinbefore and also the directions contained in the judgment of this Court in Saji KM," the order stated..It also directed the authorities to take necessary action against KSRTC and KURTC vehicles that are used after tampering with the percentage of visual transmission of light of the safety glass of the windscreen, rear window and side windows of such vehicles, either by pasting any material upon the safety glass or by fixing sliding ‘cloth curtains’, etc. Pertinently, the Court also directed the Transport Commissioner and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to take necessary steps to ensure that videos promoting the use of motor vehicles that flout safety standards are not being uploaded to YouTube and other online platforms..The order was passed in a matter in which the court had taken suo motu cognisance in the wake of the recent Vadakkencherry bus accident in which nine persons, including five school children died and over forty persons were injured.Over the course of a few hearings held since the accident occurred, the Court found that the tourist bus carrying the school children that was involved in the accident seemed to have been flouting several safety norms.Since then, the Court has been pulling up the enforcement officers under the Transport Commissioner and the State police for not taking earnest efforts to ensure strict enforcement of the provisions under the Motor Vehicles Act and Rules even after all its previous orders..In its most recent order, the Court reiterated that contract carriages or other transport vehicles, which are used in public places flouting the safety standards and also the standards prescribed in relation to control of noise, shall be dealt with appropriately by initiating prosecution. Such vehicles are to be produced before the jurisdictional Magistrate court along with color photographs and videos of the bus body, passenger compartment, driver cabin, and luggage compartment and further proceedings regarding custody of that vehicle shall be taken based on the orders of that court..The Court noted that vehicles with extensive modifications posing threat to the safety of other road users, emitting fumes, thick smoke and loud sound from the exhaust, for drifting and similar performances and its promotion by bloggers, are permitted entry through Cochin port or any other ports India.In this regard, the Court directed the Deputy Solicitor General of India to inform it as to the norms and conditions for the import of vehicles through Carnet..The matter will be taken up next on October 20..[Read Order]