Ever since Punjab Inspector General of Police (IGP) Muhammad Tahir suggested a 2,000 per cent raise in traffic challans fee to discourage the growing culture of violating traffic laws, a list of “new traffic violations” is making rounds over the internet.
According to the list that has been trending on social networks, the fines for different violations, such as driving a vehicle without a license and using custom number plates, range from Rs1,000 to Rs30,000.
It also suggests various new traffic violations along with their respective fines, including driving a non-registered vehicle, not displaying the registration sticker and driving a vehicle on road without renewal of its license.
With hundreds of thousands of netizens being rather excited over the list that “would help control traffic better”, Pakistan Today has done a bit of research and discovered that it is completely fake!
It has actually been copied from the official website of Qatar’s Ministry of Interior (portal.moi.gov.qa) and the currency has been changed from QR to PKR. Moreover, 3,000 QR fines have been augmented to 30,000!
The entire document consisting of 113 violations spread across 17 pages can be read here.
It may be noted that the list spread over Facebook and WhatsApp like wildfire after Punjab IGP on Saturday wrote to Lahore CCPO that the only way to discourage traffic violations was to increase the fine amount. He suggested that traffic wardens should collect 2,000 per cent more fine from motorists and 1,000 per cent more fine from the bikers in case of traffic violations.
Even if the suggestions are implemented, the challan fee for vehicles would increase from Rs500 to Rs10,000.