Ladies, buy helmet, it’s mandatory now

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 3

The UT Administration  has  made helmet mandatory for two-wheeler women riders, exempting only Sikhs with a turban.

Sources said Punjab Governor and UT Administrator VP Singh Badnore gave his nod to the proposal on Tuesday. The  decision would be implemented   from the date of the notification, likely to issued in a day  or two.

The Administration examined all objections received on the draft notification. In the draft notification, the Administration had proposed to use the words “a Sikh woman wearing a turban” instead of the words “or a woman” in Rule 193 of the Chandigarh Motor Vehicle Rules, 1990. While Punjab and Haryana exempted only Sikh women from wearing helmets, the UT Administration had exempted all women. 

The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, permits state governments to make relaxation for some categories. The sources said the Administration had prepared the draft notification after examining the provisions in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.

The Administration had received around 15 objections to the draft notification. The Shiromani Akali Dal, Chandigarh, and a few others had demanded exemption for all Sikh women, but a majority of the residents and associations supported the draft notification.

The draft notification was issued in view of a notice issued by the Punjab and Haryana High Court to the UT Administration on a suo motu petition on the rising number of accidents involving women, who were exempted from wearing helmets, on city roads. In the past decade, many women riding two-wheelers have lost their lives in accidents.

15 objections were received

The Administration had received around 15 objections to the draft notification. The Shiromani Akali Dal, Chandigarh, and a few others had demanded exemption for all Sikh women, but a majority of the residents and associations supported the draft notification.