<![CDATA[For any motorist, the sight of a tow truck seems to be giving him a worrying impression that something bad is going to happen to him . A record number cars were towed away in the first six months of the year. It is the highest since 2002. With six months remaining, the number could exceed 2 lakh vehicles even by conservative estimates. The traffic police attribute this to the hike in penalties, which attracted a large number of private players with towing vehicles. Closely to Rs.9.98 crore has been collected in the first six months, which is more than what was collected in the past five years combined. The city has nearly 70 towing vehicles. Private players get Rs.500 for towing a car while a similar amount goes to the government. An average of 720 vehicles are towed every day. According to Additional Commissioner of Police (traffic) R. Hitendra, the police were struggling to get private towing vehicles. But once the rates were hiked, many private players have come forward with towing vehicles . The traffic police are dependent on private towing vehicles, as they own just two. The focus is on the Central Business District, where illegal parking is getting worse quickly and in an uncontrolled way. Private towing operators have been asked to focus on cars rather than only two-wheelers. Earlier, they preferred to lift two-wheelers as more than six could be towed at a time, as compared to just one car. According to Mr. Hitendra the drives have been working in high-density corridors and in the Central Business District and are seeing fewer motorists parking in non-designated areas. The Police department’s outreach platforms, primarily social media platforms have been flooded with complaints. Many motorists complain that their vehicles were damaged during towing. A few have pointed out that their vehicles were towed from areas where there are signs prohibiting parking. Breaking rules from January 2017 to June 2017 Total violations: 57.06 lakh Parking offenses: 13.8 lakh Towing statistics of the number of towing vehicles: 70 Vehicles towed from January 2017 to June 2017: 1.31 lakh In 2002: 1.36 lakh vehicles were towed and the towing charge collected from the period January - June 2017: Rs.9.98 crore From 2012 -To 2016: Rs. 9.45 crore The Hike in penalties in connection with the vehicle and the corresponding years Vehicle | 2016 | 2017 Four-wheelers | Rs. 500 | Rs. 1,000 Two-wheelers | Rs. 200 | Rs. 650]]>
