To live in any country you have to follow the law and breaking the law in any case is bound to attract punishment. The punishment depends upon the nature of the offence that you have committed. Now with regards to breaking traffic rules in India we are liable to pay fine or serve a jail or we can be disqualified from driving any vehicle .
Table of Contents
List of Traffic Rules in India
- Always Keep Left While driving/riding on a two-way road
- Use Indicators while taking a turn, or slowing down, or overtaking, or stopping.
- Wear Helmet while riding a two-wheeler, and ensure your pillion wears a helmet too.
- Wear Seat belt for four-wheeler users both the driver and the co-driver or the other passenger.
- Do Not Use Mobile Phone while driving or riding any vehicle.
- Display Registration Marks Clearly
- Overtake only from the Right Side
- Give Way to Emergency Vehicles
- Maintain Lane Discipline
- Maintain Speed Limit as over speeding attracts a hefty fine and could be dangerous for other road users.
- Follow Road Signs such as ‘No Parking’, ‘No Right Turn or Left Turn’, ‘No Honking’, etc.
- ‘U’ Turn: You can take a ‘U’ Turn only when there’s no warning sign, and when there’s no traffic around your vehicle.
- Maintain Distance Between Vehicles
- Give Way to Pedestrians especially at zebra and pedestrian crossings.
- Carry Driving and Vehicle Documents should be carried
- Don’t Jump a Red Signal
- Don’t Ride on Footpath
- Prohibition of Drink and Drive
- Unnecessary Honking
- Give Way When Another Vehicle Overtakes
- Be Careful at Intersections
- Do Not Overload
List of Traffic Police Fines for Violations as per New Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| General | First-Time Offence: Rs.500 Second-Time Offence: Rs.1,500 | First-Time Offence: Rs.100 Second-Time Offence: Rs.300 |
Violation of Road Rules :- Any king of violation on road will lead to find of Rs. 500 to Rs. 1000 according to New Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 while previously there was no such penalty.
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Ticket less Travel | Rs.500 | Rs.200 |
| Disobeying orders from the Authorities and Refusing to Share Information | Rs.2,000 | Rs.500 |
| Driving an Unauthorized Vehicle without License | Rs.5,000 | Rs.1,000 |
Fine related to Driving
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Driving Without License | Rs.5,000 | Rs.500 |
| Driving Regardless of Disqualification | Rs.10,000 | Rs.500 |
Over Speeding :- As per new penalty for LMV (Light Motor Vehicle) fine Rs.1,000 to Rs.2,000 and for Medium Passenger or Goods Vehicle the fine is Rs.2,000 to Rs.4,000 and impounding of DL for the Subsequent or Second-Time Offence. while previously it was only Rs 400 for both LMV & Medium Passenger or Goods Vehicle.
Dangerous / Rash Driving :- First-Time Offence there will be imprisonment of 6 Months to 1 Year and/or Fine of Rs.1,000 to Rs.5,000. Second-Time Offence:
Imprisonment of up to 2 years and/or Fine up to Rs.10,000.
Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol or Intoxicating Substance
Driving under the influence of an intoxicating substance is a serious crime and because of this chances of damage and injuries increase exponentially and because of this there is huge increase in penalty. If alcohol levels exceeding 30 mg per 100 ml of Blood for the First-Time Offence there is fine of Rs.10,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 6 months and for the Second-Time Offence:
Rs.15,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 2 years.
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
| Oversized Vehicles | Rs.5,000 | Nil |
| Driving When Mentally/Physically Unfit | First-Time Offence: Rs.1,000 Second-Time Offence: Rs.2,000 | First-Time Offence:Rs.200 Second-Time Offence:Rs.500 |
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
| Accident Related Offences | First-Time Offence:Rs.5,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 6 months. Second-Time Offence:Rs,10,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 1 Year. | Nil |
| Driving Uninsured Vehicle (without Insurance) | First-Time Offence: Rs.2,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 3 months. Second-Time Offence: Rs.4,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 3 months. | Rs.1,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 3 months. |
| Racing and Speeding | First-Time Offence:Rs.5,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 3 months. Second-Time Offence:Rs.10,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 1 year. | Rs.500 |
| Offence | New Penalty (From September 2019) | Old Penalty |
| Vehicle Without Permit | Rs.10,000 and/or Imprisonment of up to 6 months. | Up to Rs.5,000 |
| Aggregators (Violations of Licensing Conditions) | Rs.25,000 to Rs.1 lakh | Nil |
| Overloading | Rs.20,000 and Rs.2,000 per extra tonne | Rs.2,000 and Rs.1,000 per extra tonne |
| Overloading of Passengers | Rs.1,000 per extra passenger | Nil |
| Not Wearing Seatbelt | Rs.1,000 | Rs.100 |
| Overloading of Two-Wheelers | Rs.2,000 and Disqualification of License for 3 months | Rs.100 |
| Not Wearing Helmet | Rs.1,000 and Disqualification of License for 3 months | Rs.100 |
| Not Providing Way for Emergency Vehicles | Rs.10,000 and/or Imprisonment of 6 months | Nil |
| Offences by Juveniles | Rs.25,000 with Imprisonment of 3 years for which the Guardian / Owner shall be deemed to be guilty. | Nil |
| Power of Officers to Impound Documents | Suspension of DL under Section 183, 184, 185, 189, 190, 194C, 194D, 194E | Nil |
| Offences Committed by Enforcing Officers | Double the Penalty under Relevant Section | Nil |
Bribing Traffic Officials:
In India people get away from the fine and penalties by bribing the police officials. To some extent, people even manage to get away by paying a bribe in the form of cash. However, bribing an official is a crime in itself and should not be committed.
States that have Implemented New Traffic Fines
With the update of The Motor Vehicles Amendment Act there was controversy as many states were not in the favor of imposing the center’s decision heavier fines. However, maximum of the states has accepted and implemented new traffic fines.
| Andaman and Nicobar | Andhra Pradesh | Karnataka |
| Chandigarh | Arunachal Pradesh | Manipur |
| Daman and Diu | Assam | Meghalaya |
| Dadar and Nagar Haveli | Bihar | Mizoram |
| Delhi | Goa | Nagaland |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Haryana | Sikkim |
| Ladakh | Himachal Pradesh | Tamil Nadu |
| Lakshadweep | Jharkhand | Tripura |
| Uttar Pradesh | Uttarakhand |
States that did not Implement New Traffic Fines:
There are many states that have not implemented the new The Motor Vehicles Amendment are as follows :-
| Kerala | Rajasthan |
| Madhya Pradesh | Gujarat |
| Odhisa | Punjab |
| Chattisgarh | Telangana |
| Puducherry | West Bengal |
| Maharashtra |
FAQ ?
List of documents that need to carry while driving are DL, RC, Tax Paid Receipt, Emission Test Certificate and Insurance Certificate. For transport vehicles you need to carry Fitness Certificate and Permit also.
For collecting penalties on the spot only traffic police branch officer or above the rank of Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police is authorized
Mobile phone is prohibited while driving any two or four wheeler
Initially it was Rs.400 but after Sept2019 it has been increased to Rs.1000 – Rs. 2000 for LMV & Rs 2,000 to Rs 4,000 for Medium Passenger or Goods Vehicle.
No, You can’t have two DL in India. As per new Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Act 2019, you will have to pay penalty if found guilty.