Calangute: Tourists who drive after consuming alcohol should be arrested, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo said on Saturday. Speaking to reporters along with Sudip Tamhankar, general secretary of the All Goa Private Bus Owners Association, and rent-a-cab operators, Lobo said there is growing concern after a recent spike in accidents involving tourists driving rental vehicles and an urgent need for preventive action.“The Motor Vehicles Act is very clear. There are penalties for driving after consuming alcohol and any tourist found driving after getting drunk should be immediately arrested so that the message goes out that drunk driving is not tolerated in Goa,” Lobo said.Referring to a recent order by transport director Arvind Khutkar directing compliance with provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, Tamhankar said the association has repeatedly represented to authorities that when a bus driver is caught driving drunk, police or the RTO should proceed against the driver rather than seizing the bus.He said that when a driver is found to be drunk, the driver should be arrested immediately, and said the same law applies to rental vehicles.Following a representation from the bus owners’ association, Khutkar wrote to police stating that in cases where drivers of passenger vehicles are found driving under the influence of alcohol while on duty, they should be proceeded against under sections 185, 202 and 203 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and that passenger vehicles should not be detained unnecessarily.In his communication, Khutkar highlighted that under the MV Act, a police officer in uniform can arrest without a warrant any person driving dangerously or recklessly, driving drunk, or driving under the influence of drugs.
