Most of the time when a police officer stops a vehicle on the road, we know that they have stopped the vehicle for checking and issuing a fine. However, sometimes police officers stop a vehicle to help the citizens understand the traffic rules. Recently, a video has been shared online in which a police officer was seen applying reflective tape on a Maruti Brezza. The only problem was that he was doing this mandatory process of a commercial vehicle on a private car.
Police Officer Applies Reflective Tape on SUV
The video of the police officer applying reflective tape on a private Maruti Brezza has been shared on Reddit. It starts with the police officer stopping a Brezza driver. He then tells him that his car is missing something, and that is reflective tape. The officer then states that he will be helping him in rectifying this issue.
He then states that he has been applying this tape on bikes, and today he will be adding this to cars as well. So after explaining this, he asks the owner to come out and help him in applying reflecting tape on the car. After this, he starts at the front of the Brezza.
The police officer mentions that on the front there should always be a white reflective tape. Next up, he moves to the side profile of the car. He then adds that on the side, yellow tape is added from the front door to the rear door.
Lastly, he adds red reflective tape to the rear end of the SUV. Finally, he mentions that his car is now fully legal and cannot be fined anywhere in the country. The car owner then asks him if he can go, to which he replies that yes, he can now go ahead.
What’s wrong with this?
You must be wondering if a police officer is applying reflective tape on a vehicle. What is wrong with it? Well, the answer is that in the video, the car that this police officer applies reflective tape to is a privately registered vehicle. This rule about reflective tape is applicable only for taxis and commercial vehicles.
All of the automotive manufacturers in India add reflectors to passenger vehicles from the factory. It is bigger vehicles like trucks, tractors, and some taxis that miss out on such reflective tapes and reflectors. So back in 2022, Noida police started issuing Rs 10,000 challans to owners of vehicles which did not have reflective tapes.
Why are reflectors necessary?
For those who may not be aware of why reflectors are necessary, here are the reasons. Generally, there is very low visibility of vehicles during foggy weather. And this becomes one of the main reasons for road accidents in India.
This is one of the major causes of accidents in Northern India during winters. At this time, even the high-speed highways are clogged with heavy fog. This then results in low visibility that hampers the vision of the motorists.
According to the records of the traffic police of Gautam Budh Nagar in Noida, a total of 798 accidents took place in 2021, which claimed the lives of 368 people. So to avoid these accidents, police authorities have been cracking down on vehicles which do not have reflectors or reflective tapes behind.