Here's how Gujarat cops prevent manja deaths. Will Mumbai adopt it?

A traffic policeman collars a biker with a protective neckband in Surat; (right) a safety arch on a motorcycle. The use of the arch is being promoted across Gujarat

The Gujarat police and local municipal corporation in Surat have taken multi-pronged initiatives to prevent fatalities and injuries due to glass-coated manja ahead of Makar Sankranti. However, no such steps have been taken in Mumbai where a constable recently bled to death on the road after his neck was slit by kite string on the Vakola flyover. Officials in Surat have tied wires to electric poles to prevent stray kite strings from impacting motorcyclists.

Surat traffic cops provide neckbands

The traffic authorities there, meanwhile, have banned two-wheelers from plying elevated roads and flyovers on January 14 and 15 while the Gujarat police have taken the online route to educate road users. Government officials in Surat have also been distributing Rexine neckbands among bikers. The sale and purchase of glass-coated Chinese manja have been banned by the authorities concerned, but revellers have been arranging for it from adjacent cities or buying it online to win kite-flying events.

Slew of measures

Deputy Commissioner of Gujarat Police (Special Branch) Hetal Patel said, "Our team has joined hands with traffic authorities as well as local municipal corporations to safeguard motorists on the road where their necks are exposed to manja. We have also taken the help of social media to spread awareness and discourage the people of Gujarat from flying kites with this string."

A wire strung up between utility poles to ensnare manja

She added, "We are circulating messages on WhatsApp groups to tell citizens to take certain precautions such as using mufflers, scarves and neckbands and installing safety arches on their motorcycles to protect riders." An NGO in Gujarat has also been roped in to distribute neckbands and other safety gear free of cost.

"Above all, we request people not to pop their necks out of their car roofs as this proves lethal," said Patel, adding that strict legal action was being taken against manja sellers in the state. Amita Vanani, DCP (traffic), Gujarat police, said, "We have been spreading the word and running a campaign for the past month to educate people about the safety measures to be taken on the road during Makar Sankranti."

Motorcycle safety arches, the use of which is being promoted by the authorities in Surat

She added, "Though we have been distributing neckbands among motorcyclists, we will keep all the elevated roads and flyovers shut only for two-wheelers on January 14 and 15. We request people, especially motorcyclists, not to over-speed. On every bridge, we have deployed police officials to stop motorcyclists from using elevated roads."

Bikers react

Motorcyclists in Surat have welcomed the steps that were being taken to preserve their lives. "Tying wires around light poles to prevent manja from injuring motorcyclists is a great initiative. I think this is the first time that the officials concerned have taken such a step. But they must remove stray string after the festival; otherwise, birds will get injured," said Heer Dumasia, a motorcyclist in Surat.

Viraj Ghanekar

Another biker, Ayush Tiwari, said, "I would like to thank traffic the officials for disallowing two-wheelers on flyovers for two consecutive days when the threat of getting their throat slit is high." He added, "The distribution of neckbands proves that the Gujarat police cares for the life of people on the road. Thank you, Surat police. We have seen people dying on the road as their necks get slit by glass-coated manja. These initiatives should be imitated by government officials in all the major cities where similar fatal accidents have taken place."

Situation in Mumbai

Though the Mumbai police claim to have weeded out all Chinese manja sellers in the city in the wake of the death of 36-year-old constable Sameer Jadhav, the possibility of shops, both real and virtual, selling it sporadically at a high cost can't be ruled out. After Jadhav's passing, the cops started to book kite fliers under the Maharashtra Police Act. During intensified efforts in the initial few days after the death, the Mumbai police seized manja worth Rs 44,450 and imposed fines totalling R14,440 under Section 113 of the Bombay Police Act, which prohibits flying kites.

When contacted by mid-day, Pravin Padwal, the joint commissioner of police (traffic) on Thursday evening shared an advisory, which mentioned that from January 12 to February 10, there would be a ban on the "use, sale and storage of the pucca threads commonly known as nylon manja made of plastic or any such synthetic material which is likely to cause grievous injury to the birds as well as to human beings especially during the festival where kites are flown".

Those contravening the order will be punished under Indian Penal Code Section 188 (knowingly disobeys an order, and thereby causing danger of riot). Apart from endangering human life, manja poses a grave threat to birds and animals. But no initiative has been taken to mitigate the threat by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in this regard.

When contacted, civic chief Iqbal Singh Chahal merely said, "Every year, the transport commissioner and Mumbai traffic police officials run a road safety drive in the first week of January." When these reporters tried to approach Maharashtra Transport Commissioner Vivek Bhimanwar, he directed them to speak to the Deputy Commissioner of Road Safety in Maharashtra, Bharat Kalaskar, but the latter did not respond to their queries.

‘Mumbaikars deserve better'

A Mumbai-based motorist, Viraj Ghanekar, said, "The recent death of the constable was horrible. The state government must direct all agencies concerned to join hands to safeguard the people of Mumbai the way officials in Gujarat are doing." "In Mumbai, the roads are really bad in shape. There is no motorable stretch in the city, and now the stray deadly kite strings are killing motorcyclists. We deserve better facilities. Above all, the onus also lies on those who use deadly manja to fly kites. Loose strings are fatal for road users as well as birds," Ghanekar said.

Jan 14, 15
Days bikes are banned on Surat's bridges, elevated roads