Double penalty if both driver, front passenger don't wear seat belts

Thiruvananthapuram: The authorities have decided to strictly implement the rule that car driver and front passenger should mandatorily wear seat belts. The fine will be doubled if both are found to be not wearing the seat belts. The owner of the vehicle will receive two notices charging the penalty for an equal number of violations.

Until now, officials used to impose fines only on the driver and would ignore the offence by the front passenger during checks carried out in person. This leniency will not be extended any further.

A total of 7,896 offences, forming the majority of the violations detected by the artificial intelligence (AI) cameras, were of passengers in the front seat not wearing the seat belt.

As in the case of cars, if two persons ride a two-wheeler without wearing helmets, two notices will be issued to the owner of the vehicle, with each imposing a fine of Rs 500.

Transport Minister Antony Raju has issued strict instructions that vehicles of Very Important Persons (VIP) should not be exempted from fines. Fifty-six VIP vehicles have been booked for violation of law till now. The offences involving all of them were for not wearing the seat belt. However, no vehicles of Ministers are on the list.