No road accidents in Guwahati on New Year's Eve

Assam’s largest city Guwahati did not witness any road mishap on New Year's Eve following a special drive to enforce safety regulations to prevent accidents on the last day of 2021, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday.

Sarma, who led the initiative for an accident-free New Year's Eve', was himself out on the streets of Guwahati on Friday night to boost the morale of police and transport department personnel who were on duty to curb traffic violations.

“There were no road accidents last night as per reports available till Saturday afternoon. There was no curfew last night and there were plenty of cars on the roads,” he said.

During his visit to several locations in the city, the chief minister came across a sizeable number of senior citizens driving with their families post-midnight and enjoying themselves, Sarma said.

In the absence of inebriated drivers, people were coming out with their families and having a good time, he added.

A senior police officer said 115 cases of drunken driving were detected during Friday’s drive, with a fine of Rs 10,000 imposed in each case.

Altogether 638 drunken driving cases were registered in the city in the last few days after the intensified operation was launched, he added.

Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) superintendent Dr Abhijit Sharma said no accident victim had been brought to the hospital from the city on Friday night.

“We received few such patients, but they were from nearby districts like Nalbari and Morigaon,” Dr Sharma added.

The state has already witnessed more than 6,800 accidents, in which over 2,800 people have lost their lives in 2021.

As Assam welcomed the New Year last year, the state lost 29 lives in 69 accidents between December 31 and January 1, according to the state transport department data.

The chief minister also said the law enforcers of the state are now engaged in ‘active policing'.

Sarma said 28 people were killed and 62 injured as a result of police action in the past year, in an apparent reference to shooting at suspects when they allegedly attempted to escape from custody or while trying to evade arrest.