Kerala man fined Rs 2.5 lakh for obstructing Ambulance’s path, incident recorded on video

Kerala man fined Rs 2.5 lakh for obstructing Ambulance’s path, incident recorded on video

Mangalore Today News Network

Thrissur, November 18, 2024: Kerala Police has reportedly revoked the licence of a private vehicle owner in Thrissur and slapped a hefty fine of Rs 2.5 lakh for blocking the path of an ambulance. According to a report by Times Now, the incident happened on November 7 along the Chalakudy route leading to Thrissur Medical College. However, some reports suggest the ambulance was travelling from Ponnani. A video of the dashcam footage went viral on social media and Kerala Police swiftly acted upon it.

The two-minute-long dashcam footage shows the ambulance closely tailing a silver Maruti Suzuki car on a narrow, two-lane stretch of a road. The ambulance driver persistently honks and blares the siren, but the car’s driver seemingly does not allow the vehicle to pass. He even appears to block every attempt the ambulance makes to overtake.

The outlet further reported that the vehicle owner had been imposed a fine for failing to draw to the side road on the approach of an ambulance, obstructing the discharge of the functions of an authority empowered by the Motor Vehicles Act and not carrying a Pollution Under Control Certificate (PUCC).

As per Section 194E of the Motor Vehicles Act, whoever while driving a motor vehicle fails to draw to the side of the road, on the approach of a fire service vehicle or of an ambulance or other emergency vehicle as may be specified by the State Government, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with a fine of ten thousand rupees or with both.

Watch the video here:

Such an insane & inhuman act.

A car owner in Kerala has been fined Rs/- 2.5 Lakh and their license has been cancelled for not giving away the path for an ambulance.

Well done @TheKeralaPolice pic.twitter.com/RYGqtKj7jZ

— Vije (@vijeshetty) November 16, 2024

An Instagram user even shared a picture of a police officer at the vehicle owner’s home. They also wrote a caption in Malayalam. When translated to English, it reads, “Trophy is given to the house for running and defeating the ambulance. Big Salute MVD."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Saleesh Thrissur (Attapadi) (@saleesh_thrissur)

In response to the video, an individual tagged Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari, and wrote, “Can you kindly ensure that as part of road safety rules and laws, giving way to the ambulance is an important aspect and people who don’t give way to it are punishable. Yesterday I saw a similar incident when an ambulance driver had to honk the horn to ask for space."

“Such inhumane and selfish act must be a non-bailable offence. He must rot in jail," added another.

A third commented, “The police’s step to impose a fine and disqualify the driver’s licence against the obstinate car driver for not giving passage to the ambulance carrying a serious patient deserves appreciation. Which of course is part of their duty. India needs to have more active traffic surveillance."

“The fine of Rs. 2.5 lakh and cancellation of the license, in this case, can be seen as a strong legal consequence to discourage such behaviour. It sends a clear message that traffic violations, especially those that impede emergency services, are taken very seriously. By imposing such severe penalties, the authorities are reinforcing the idea that public safety and human lives should always come before personal convenience or disregard for the rules," expressed a fourth.