The Madras High Court has quashed the central government’s notification fixing 120 kmph as the speed limit for vehicles plying on highways. A division bench of Justices N Kirubakaran (since superannuated) and Justice TV Thamilselvi recently set aside the notification dated April 6, 2018 and also directed the Center and the state to issue fresh notification with reduced speed limit. .
Basically, passing an interim order on an appeal on March 3 this year, the Bench, other member Justice Abdul Quddoz, increased the amount of compensation ₹18.43 lakh to ₹1.50 crore to the appellant – a dentist who had suffered 90 per cent disability due to a road accident, occurred in April 2013 at Kancheepuram, Tamil Nadu.
The bench had also raised a set of 12 questions, the first of which was for a direction to the central government to reconsider its 2018 notification, raising the speed limit to 120 kmph.
The matter was posted in August for filing a compliance report. The Center justified its move to increase the speed limit in its report. It said that an expert committee was constituted to review the speed limits of motor vehicles keeping in view the improved engine technology and better road infrastructure and as per its recommendations, the maximum speed of vehicles on various roads was decided by the ministry. was modified. 6th April 2018 Notification.
However, the present bench observed that though there was better engine technology and better road infrastructure, there was no improvement in the compliance of road safety rules by motorists.
The report released by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways shows that the number of deaths on the roads will prove that speeding accidents are increasing.
While over speeding was a major cause of road accidents, it is not known how improvements in road infrastructure and engine technology will reduce accidents.
In fact, better engine technology will always lead to uncontrolled speed and will lead to more accidents, the bench said.
“Knowing that over speeding is the main cause of road accidents, taking away precious lives of people and causing damage to properties, the decision taken by the Central Government, as reflected in the notification dated 6th April, 2018, is liable to be quashed. Is. .” The bench said and accordingly quashed it.
It also said that the state and central government should reduce the speed limit and fix a set of speed limits for different types of vehicles as per notification dated August 5, 2014.
“Though the matter arises under the Motor Vehicles Act, a dentist has suffered spinal cord injury and is unable to do any work on his own and has to depend on others throughout his life, noting that, This court enforces Article 226. The Constitution has taken suo motu cognizance of this decision in the public interest.”
This story has been published without modification in text from a wire agency feed. Only the title has been changed.
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