Keonjhar: Do you plan to ride a two-wheeler to a place of worship in Keonjhar district? Wear a helmet if you want to pray there.
Heads of churches, gurudwaras,mosques and temples have joined hands in the Odisha district to curb road accidents.
The clerics of these worship places have made it mandatory for two-wheeler riders to wear helmets while visiting shrines to offer prayers.
Those without helmets would be denied the right to offer prayer, a joint statement of Hindu-Muslim-Christian-Sikh priests in Keonjhar district stated.
Last year, road accidents claimed 350 lives in the district. The count this year is 150 so far. Most victims were two-wheeler riders who wore no helmets.
To raise awareness about road safety, police have intensified the drive to penalize those who do not wear helmets.
“Our campaign to spread awareness about road safety and safe driving involves clerics of all religions. Meetings were held with managements of temples, mosques, gurudwaras and churches across the district. They accepted our proposal to bar two-wheeler riders without helmets from offering puja,” said Keonjhar superintendent of police Jay Narayan Pankaj.
“It’s an exceedingly positive endeavor to save human lives. When the police chief interacted with us and sought our co-operation, we extended total support. A notice board has been put up right in front of the mosque debarring motorcycle riders entry for namaz if they do not have helmets,” said head of the Sunni Jama Masjid Committee Habubur Rehman.
Head of Union Baptist church S.K. Nayak and Balit Singh of Gurudwar Singh Sabha echoed Rehman while talking to reporters.
“The initiative is paying dividends. It will help develop the habit of wearing helmets among motorcyclists,” said Rehman.
(Source: telegraphindia.com)