To get free helmet from cops, motorcyclists deliberately decide not to sport one

MYSURU: The Mysuru traffic police thought they had come up with a rather unique initiative to encourage motorcyclists to use helmets, but the move seems to have backfired.

To promote safety and get more riders to follow the rule, the police, besides imposing a penalty of Rs 100 on those not wearing a helmet, also decided to gift a helmet worth Rs 500 to the violators.

Cops were seen distributing free helmets at VV Puram traffic station, Siddarthanagara traffic station, Krishnaraja traffic station, Narasimharaja traffic station and the Devaraja traffic station areas as part of the campaign that was launched on Monday.


Soon, news of the free helmets spread quickly. Excited with the prospect of getting a helmet that was worth much more than the fine, many on two-wheelers deliberately decided to flout the rule. They hid their helmets, deciding not to sport one , ready to pay the moderate fine in exchange for a new helmet.

P J Raghavenda, a lawyer, was critical of the initiative. “Distributing free helmets is not right. Traffic police are encouraging violations. These kinds of acts encourage the riders to break the rules,” he remarked.

As part of the campaign, the traffic police had tied up with a private company to distribute 1,200 helmets with the ISI mark. Realising that the move had misfired, they later called off the campaign.

(Inputs from Vijay Karnataka )