'Drunk & Drive' test stopped in this state

No disaster can be absolute. Even the darkest cloud has a silver lining, says a two-wheeler rider in response to the Kerala police’s move to temporarily stop using breathalyzer to catch drunken drivers. Like him, many regular riders who are being regularly intercepted by police, especially during night, share similar sentiments.

Kerala DGP Lokanath Behera issued circular asking traffic police authorities to temporarily stop using breathalyzer to check drunk driving, in the wake of confirmed cases of coronavirus infection in the state. But the police authorities will continue with other normal checkups to catch drunken driving incidents.

In 2017, the Kerala High Court made the breath analysis test mandatory to book a person under drunken driving. Earlier, a city based NGO sent a letter to the Hyderabad police urging them to disband the use of breathalyzer in the wake of coronavirus outbreak.