In a major initiative to reduce drunken driving, Karnataka government has introduced breath analysers at pubs in Bengaluru, which is known as pub city. The introduction of breath analysers at pubs in collaboration with popular taxi network Ola as a safety measure is expected to reduce risks of drunken driving.
Karnataka government has introduced RISK (Road safety Initiative for a Safe Karnataka) which asks pubs to install breath analysers at the doorsteps of bars and pubs. Breath analysers will help customers know their level of alcohol consumption and they are immediately facilitated a taxi service if the reading is beyond the permissible limit for them to drive on their own. According to state transport officials more than 1000 pubs in Bengaluru have agreed to strictly adhere to this new safety campaign. In cosmopolitan Bengaluru pub culture is very much an in thing and many frequent these water holes to unwind. The pubs are also a preferred destination for Bengalurians to socialise spending lot of time drinking variety of beer.
This road safety initiative by the government is seen as a measure to reduce risks on driving high.
According to Food and Civil Supplies Minister UT Khader this initiative will help reduce the risks of drunken driving. He said if people began assessing for themselves how much alcohol they had number of drunken driving cases would certainly come down. The move would also make alcohol consumers behave responsibly, he added.
He said “Driving under the influence of alcohol has become a major issue and it is extremely critical that we channelise our efforts to bringing these instances down to zero. This will happen when there are alternatives available for them to avoid drunken driving.” After completing its pilot in the city in the coming months, the initiative will be rolled out in various parts of Karnataka.
According to Raghuvesh Sarup , a senior Ola official, over 1,000 pubs, bars and restaurants have agreed to join the campaign, which will not only ensure a safe ride back home for the driver, but also reduce cases of road mishaps in general.
To discourage people from drunken driving Ola will facilitate cab bookings from the designated kiosks. The campaign under the name RISK — Road Safety Initiative for Safer Karnataka — is a joint initiative by Consumer Affairs Department, Transport Ministry, Institute of Public Health and Ola. Road traffic accidents are one of the leading causes of unnatural deaths in Karnataka.
According to transport department officials even if one consumes alcohol, he or she should not indulge in driving, which could inconvenience others or even put them in danger. Joint commissioner (transport), Maruthi Sambrani observed that, of a total of 1.7 crore automobiles in the state, 65 lakh vehicles were in Bengaluru. “So, such initiatives will help prevent accidents,” he added. According to the data available with the transport department, of the 55,621 traffic violation cases referred by police between April 2014 and June ‘16, drunken driving accounted for 25,574 cases, wherein licences were cancelled. Over 21,000 cases were related to other traffic violations, while 9,616 cases were under consideration.