Over 600 Punekars Penalized for Drunk Driving During Holi Crackdown
Pune, 15th March 2025: In a bid to curb drunk driving and ensure road safety during Holi celebrations, police in Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad carried out a special enforcement drive on Friday. The crackdown resulted in action against 334 offenders in Pune and 272 in Pimpri Chinchwad for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Pune’s Additional Commissioner of Police (East), Manoj Patil, stated that a special operation was launched across the city, with 1,500 police personnel stationed at 60 checkpoints to monitor reckless driving.
“Our goal was to prevent accidents caused by intoxicated driving and to ensure public safety. The operation was led by Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Amol Zende and focused on identifying drunk drivers, triple-seat riders, wrong-side motorists, and those speeding in no-entry zones,” Patil explained.
To intensify checks, the traffic police deployed 240 breath analysers, distributing four devices per division across 40 traffic zones, said Assistant Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Subhash Nikam.
“From 9 AM to 6 PM, we conducted stringent checks in areas like Nagar Road, Mundhwa, Koregaon Park, Vimanagar, Khadki, Chatushrungi, Baner, Deccan Gymkhana, Kothrud, Warje Malwadi, Shivajinagar, Satara Road, Kondhwa, Wanowrie, and Hadapsar,” Nikam said.
During the operation, 200 individuals were penalized in the first half of the day, with enforcement continuing into the evening.
In Pimpri Chinchwad, a similar drive was conducted at 25 checkpoints, where 272 violators were caught for drunk driving, according to Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic), Bapu Bangar.
“Our teams were stationed at key junctions across the twin cities to deter reckless driving. The aim was to send a strong message that drunk driving will not be tolerated,” Bangar said.
Authorities have urged citizens to exercise caution and avoid driving under the influence to prevent accidents. Pune and Pimpri Chinchwad police have warned that such enforcement drives will continue in the future to ensure road safety.
