Army to handle driving licences

[Zabaniyah]

New law on cards to deal with road accidents

The communications ministry is planning to involve the army in the issuing of driving licences so nobody can obtain a licence bypassing due procedures.

The attempt is being made so that people with fake driving licences and licences obtained through unorthodox means cannot put people on the country's roads in danger.

“As per the plan, Bangladesh Road Transport Authority and the army will work together to issue licences utilising the army's experience in the national identity card and machine-readable passport projects,” said a senior communications ministry official yesterday.

The official said the procedure for getting driving licences will be scrutinised. “Only educated and efficient drivers will be given licences following strict rules,” added the official.

He said Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain instructed the communications secretary to take steps in this regard.

RECKLESS DRIVING PENALTY

A new traffic law is in the offing to deal with the growing problem of road accidents across the country, UNB reports.

Finance Minister AMA Muhith said, “Our aim is to place the proposed Road Transport and Traffic Bill in parliament in January 2012.”

The bill has provisions for maximum two year's imprisonment and fines up to Tk 10,000 for reckless driving.

Muhith, however, said, “It shouldn't be two years...it should be seven years and the fine should be several lakhs.”

He was speaking to reporters after a meeting on the bill at his ministry's conference room yesterday. Communications Minister Syed Abul Hossain, Roads and Railways Division Secretary Mozammel Haque Khan, officials of the Dhaka Transport Coordination Board (DTCB) and the BRTA attended the meeting.

Muhith said the bill would be placed before the cabinet in December this year for consideration.

He said the draft bill will be on a website for a month so that people can give their opinions on the bill. The opinions and recommendations will later be studied by the authorities concerned for 15 days and then sent to the ministry with recommendations.

Muhith said the Motor Vehicles Act was first introduced in 1939 and it was amended in 1983. The law allows punishment on 50 counts only.

The proposed bill will have provision for punishment on 300 counts of offences. Hit-and-run and leaving the scene of an accident will be an offence once the bill is passed by parliament.

“There'll be no loophole...everything will be covered,” Muhith added.

The new law will be applicable to everything transport related. “If any road accident results in deaths, it'll be under the penal code,” the minister said.

The finance minister said there are 10 lakh valid driving licences holders in the country against 15 lakh vehicles. He said the government would undertake different programmes to solve this discrepancy.

He said drivers will be trained and given licences by the BRTA on successful completion of the training.

Source: Army to handle driving licences

Reckless drivers should be sent to gulags

 

[bd_4_ever]

Excellent move. Yet its a plan for now. I hope this is implemented soon.

No more innocent deaths due to someone else's fault.


Cheers!!!

 

[scrumpy]

Bad move. An army's job is to keep the boundaries secure and not to hand out driving licenses. If you think the army guys are incorruptible, then you are in for a nasty surprise.
I don't see what advantages an army man could bring to a very civilian enterprise like issuing of driving licenses.

 

[nForce]

does not this move show lack of confidence over the Police and demoralize them?

 

[Skies]

It's not a job of Army. Someone is trying to keep army busy into odd jobs.

It's proving how incompetent and corrupted are our institutes. Better involve BDR into it, they seem useless.



Anyway,

Solution:

1) If license giving authority BRTA fails in preventing corruption and giving license to right candidates then sack all the corrupted people from BRTA and replace with new honest people. Lots of jobless people are there who are willing to serve the nation with honesty.

2) Or set one honest army person as DG/head of BRTA, no need to involve 1000 armies here.

 

[Tiki Tam Tam]

So, the Army is the sole custodians of morals?!

Why not have the army running the country instead of this bickering façade of a democracy that is held at ransom by the two political female leaders?

 

[President Camacho]

Is there such a lack of competent entities? Or is it that the Army guys are considered absolutely incorruptible?

Somehow it appears to be going the Pakistan way where the Army is allowed to run its own private businesses.

Pretty bad for a precedence.

 

[bd_4_ever]

Is there such a lack of competent entities? Or is it that the Army guys are considered absolutely incorruptible?

Somehow it appears to be going the Pakistan way where the Army is allowed to run its own private businesses.

Pretty bad for a precedence.

In addition to it, its probably corruption as well. Accidents have become common recent days. Army probably can run it well and is less-prone to corruption than the current authority. Off course they are not incorruptible.

About business, our army already has been doing business for quite sometime. The footsteps of PA were followed in that matter, though i do not agree in doing full fledged business.


Cheers!!!

 

[T90TankGuy]

this is insane . have you no civil administration ? where will it stop?

 

[somebozo]

Bangladeshi Army looks inspired by Pakistani army to get involved in state affairs

 

[monitor]

Sad but good move by govt.

 

[monitor]

does not this move show lack of confidence over the Police and demoralize them?

This is the reality . police and BRTA knows that most of the license are fake yet they don't take any proper action thats why the govt. force to do this

 

[Zabaniyah]

Bad move. An army's job is to keep the boundaries secure and not to hand out driving licenses. If you think the army guys are incorruptible, then you are in for a nasty surprise.
I don't see what advantages an army man could bring to a very civilian enterprise like issuing of driving licenses.

I'd beg to differ:
8 cops closed over Aminbazar killings

::: Star Weekend Magazine :::

The other day, I came across a "No u-turn" sign over a divider while driving on the airport highway. There was traffic police. And yet, vehicles openly took u-turns.

Bangladesh Police can generally manage basic traffic. However, it is terribly underfunded. Even our domestic helps earn more than police officers.

I wish we had a strong police force. Sadly, due to politics and whims of corrupt and powerful people, it is an ineffective force. That partly explains the bad law & order situation in the country.

Road accidents are very common. In fact, much of the patients in hospitals suffer from accident-related injuries. Many drivers drive with fake licenses or no license at all. People get killed!

So, is it feasible for the army to take up this important responsibility? Unfortunately yes.

There are important reasons why the military is a separate organization - a state within a state. A soldier's ultimate purpose is to defend the nation, and vindicate enemies of the state - both foreign and domestic.