A recent Kolkata Police drive revealed that over 40 per cent of motorcyclists in the city do not wear helmets. Alarmed by this trend, Police Commissioner Manoj Verma ordered stricter enforcement against riders without helmets.
“There’s no need for awareness drives anymore—people know helmets save lives and that not wearing one is illegal. We will ensure compliance through stricter checks on major roads,” said a senior officer.
Kolkata has over 12 lakh registered motorcycles. Between January and November this year, police penalised 4.76 lakh riders for not wearing helmets, amounting to more than 40 per cent of motorcyclists in the city. Most offenders were between 18 and 35-years-old.
Road safety statistics underline the risk: in 2023, India recorded 1.73 lakh road accident deaths, the highest ever. Two-wheeler riders accounted for nearly 44 per cent of these fatalities, with 70 per cent of them not wearing helmets.
In Kolkata, 80 per cent of fatal motorcycle accident victims were helmetless. Offenders often offer weak excuses like discomfort or leaving helmets at home, noted a traffic officer.
Nationally, Tamil Nadu reported the highest number of two-wheeler fatalities in 2022 (11,140), followed by Maharashtra (7,733) and Uttar Pradesh (6,959). West Bengal ranked 11th, with 1,754 deaths—80 per cent of which involved riders not wearing helmets.
The police aim to curb this alarming trend through increased vigilance and enforcement.
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