BENGALURU: Common man has always been the first casualty of the red beacon culture. Traffic is often held up in the city during peak hours for the passage of “VIP vehicles” sporting the symbol of privilege.
Sources in the traffic police say an increasing number of VIPs, including politicians and celebrities insist on ‘signal clearance’ to evade the city’s notorious traffic. Signal lights are switched off and traffic is stopped during VIP movements.
“When we stop traffic for a few minutes for a VIP’s convoy, its connecting roads also get affected”, says a traffic police officer.
M N Venugopal, president, State Government Drivers’ Association, who fought against the illegal use of beacons said, “Nowhere in the world are there these types of VIP privileges. Some of these VIPs may use amber lights after May 1 as they cannot live without it”.
Commuters said vehicles with beacons are common in the city. “We can spot a beacon or special number plate vehicle every 15 minutes. But nobody knows how many of them are eligible for it. Most of them are using them to skip police checks” said Arun Kumar, a regular commuter on Seshadri Road.
A senior bureaucrat said: “Beacon lights are needed during official duties. For instance, a minister or a senior government official will have to attend several programmes or conduct inspections at different places on the same day”. He admitted that the misuse of beacons and number plates should be stopped.
Traffic police officers say hefty fines will reduce the illegal use of beacons.
“Public can complain against vehicles which use beacons, with the registration number and photo of the vehicle,” said a traffic police officer.