As many as 36 motorists were prosecuted for drink driving across the city on Friday night.
The drive, which police said would continue, was carried out between 9pm on Friday and 12.30am on Saturday morning.
Of the 36, 10 were prosecuted at the Hiland Park and EM Bypass crossing, while three each were prosecuted at the Park Street-Camac Street crossing, the Girish Park crossing and the Chingrighata crossing on Friday night.
A senior officer of the traffic department said two locations were identified in each of the 25 traffic guard areas to carry out the breathalyser test on Friday night.
The Park Street-Loudon Street crossing, the Sarat Bose Road-Southern Avenue crossing, the Deshapran Sashmal Road-Tollygunge Circular Road crossing, the Gariahat crossing, the Kidderpore crossing, the Park Circus crossing, the Exide crossing, the Waterloo Street-Bentinck Street crossing, the Central Avenue-Ganesh Chandra Avenue crossing and the Howrah bridge approach were some of the 50 locations where the drive was carried out, the police said.
The police have restarted the use of breathalysers to measure the quantity of alcohol in a motorist’s blood.
Sources said the recent spate of accidents near the Chingrighata crossing, which attracted the ire of the chief minister, prompted the city police to re-launch the drive against drink-driving with gusto.
According to the night curfew rules, no one except people stuck in emergencies and those attached with emergency services should be outside their homes between 11pm and 5am. Many who were made to undergo the alcohol test were prosecuted for violating the night curfew irrespective of whether they were found driving after consumption of alcohol beyond the permissible limit.
According to section 185 of the motor vehicles act, a person can be imprisoned for up to six months or asked to pay a fine of Rs 2,000 if alcohol exceeding 30mg per 100ml is detected in the bloodstream through a breathalyser. Second and subsequent offences can lead to imprisonment for two years or a fine of Rs 3,000.
In Calcutta, a person accused of drink driving usually faces trial only if it is clubbed with other offences under the Indian Penal Code such as rash driving, causing grievous hurt or death by a rash and negligent act. Based on the police’s new yardstick for what constitutes a serious driving offence, sitting at the wheel with more than the permitted alcohol level in the body alone merits trial.
If the reading on the breathalyser is more than the permissible limit, traffic cops register a general diary entry with the local police station and handover the person to the police.
“The officers of the local police station then take the person to a local government hospital for a medical test to re-confirm the percentage of alcohol in the bloodstream of the person. An official case under section 185 MV Act is registered with the police,” said an officer.
The allegedly intoxicated person and the vehicle are either handed over to a relative or a family member who comes to claim them the same night. In absence of this, the person is kept at the police station for the night till his intoxication level reduces and he is fit to drive.
The case is then forwarded to the court for the next course of action.
