Police seize more than 2,200 vehicles, make motorists take pledge to not violate lockdown rules

The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc across India. While the second wave with a cocktail of mutant viruses is affecting lakhs of people daily, the central government has decided not to announce a nationwide lockdown as it affects the economy of the country. Nonetheless, the state governments are shutting down the entire states to contain the spread of the COVID-19. Similarly, the Karnataka government announced a state-wide lockdown starting today. Cops took strict action against anyone who broke the lockdown rules.

Before the full lockdown starting today, the Karnataka government had put a curfew, which allows the citizens to move around but only if they have a valid reason and have permission from the authorities. However, before the state goes into a full lockdown, thousands came out to reach their destinations, shift to home states and buy essentials. The Bengaluru City Police strictly imposed the lockdown rules strictly. They even made the motorists take a pledge to not break the rules again.

Also read: Almost-new 2020 Honda City sedans for sale

The Bengaluru Police have seized more than 2,277 vehicles on Sunday for violating the curfew orders. Many migrants feared the repeat of the 2020 incident when a nationwide lockdown was announced with a notice of only four hours and thousands were stranded away from their homes for months.

Police made them take the pledge

The videos from the city show that the cops rounded up anyone who was violating the lockdown rules and made them sit in the middle of the road following social distancing norms. The police use a loudspeaker to direct everyone to take the pledge. This happened after the police seized all the vehicles that were out on the road during the curfew hours.

While we are not sure if the cops also issued a challan on the spot, all the seized vehicles are likely to be returned after the second wave settles down in a few weeks time. Last year, during a similar situation, the cops seized thousands of vehicles and then returned them after verifying the documents of the vehicles.

While the earlier rule allowed the citizens to travel between 6 AM and 10 AM for an emergency, the new lockdown rules do not allow any kind of travel without prior permission. Yes, travelling to the hospitals is not included in the new lockdown rules.

Bengaluru Police have been seizing vehicles for a few weeks now. The police had said that they saw many coming out of the homes and travelling around without any valid reason. 90% of the vehicles that have been seized are two-wheelers. Also, the cops said that it is mostly the youths who come out and loiter around without any purpose.

Karnataka will remain under a full lockdown for the next 15 days. The decision to impose a lockdown came after the rising number of cases in the state. Several states including Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and many more states and union territories are under lockdown. In fact, 26 states and union territories are under some kind of lockdown.

Also read: Skoda Kushaq SUV”s official launch & price announcement timeline revealed officially