Private agency appointed by traffic cops to collect fines not issuing receipts
Private agency appointed by traffic cops to collect fines not issuing receipts
Television journalist Arun Mehetre had parked his bike in the parking zone of the British library. However, when he came out, Mehetre was in for a shock. His two-wheeler had been towed away. Mehetre's bike had been towed away and brought near the Deccan Traffic Division, opposite Modern College by a private contractor appointed by the traffic police to enforce traffic rules in that area.
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| Towed away: The spot where bikes picked up for violation of traffic and parking rules are kept. Pic/Simmi Sharma |
However, Mehetre noticed that there were no police constables to oversee who were being fined and what amounts were being collected.
"My bike was parked in the parking zone and yet they picked it up from there. When I came to collect the bike, Santosh Swami, a boy working for the contractor, said I could go away with my bike if I paid a fine of Rs 250. He said he would give me the receipt after 10 minutes. I waited for about an hour yet I did not get any receipt," said Mehetre.
Mehetre alleged that a man in a civil dress collected the fine and did not issue a receipt which meant there was no record of the money collected and where it went.
"I noticed that they merely noted the name and contact details of the person whose bike has been towed away. The person is then told to collect his receipt later," he said.
Infuriated by the treatment, Mehetre approached S G Sonawane, ACP Deccan Traffic Division and forced him to take action against the contractor.
"We will conduct an enquiry into this issue. Santosh's diary has been confiscated and it will be scrutinised. We will see to it that the parking area is marked clearly. We will make sure that constables are at hand and keeping tabs on the entire system," said Sonawane.
