The Tea Rescue: ‘Garam Chai’ offered to tired drivers at night to prevent accidents

The majority of road accidents in India occur at night or in the early morning hours when drivers are very tired or sleepy. After observing the same pattern, the Kolkata Traffic Police have now turned towards tea to find a solution! It is true that Kolkata Traffic Police are now offering hot tea to the men on the wheels, in an effort to prevent accidents.

Kolkata police decided to take action just a few days after a truck carrying a dead body hit a stone-chip-laden truck by the side of the road, killing 18 people and injuring dozens. Initial reports suggested that the driver was drunk, but the post-mortem report found no alcohol in the stomach of the driver.

‘Since the driver died, it is impossible to determine what exactly happened that night, but from our experience, we can say that the driver would have fallen asleep due to tiredness after the long drive . Occasionally, this happens when tired drivers are driving on highways. They drive the whole night in most cases, and in the dead of the night, they feel sleepy. Tiredness is their biggest enemy,’ a senior police officer said.

In addition, the police said that the drivers appear to be sleepy due to extreme fatigue. The driver in many cases doesn’t even get the time to sleep all through the day, which leads to fatal accidents. The cases of Kalikaprasad, the singer, and Deboshree Chattopadhyay, the police officer, where both of them died – are glaring examples.

The Kolkata traffic police have decided to offer tea to the tired hands in order to energise them. ‘Occasionally they have to stop because their papers need to be checked. They get some time. So, they can have tea in between. We have decided to offer them tea when we are checking their papers. This is not only a welcome gesture but this is important for the safety of the drivers and other people too,’ a senior police officer of the Kolkata Traffic Police said.

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During the last three months, there have been 32 accidents in the area of Kolkata caused by the driver falling asleep. Three people were killed in these accidents. Accidents tend to increase during the winter due to fog. Also, the officer noted that they are trying to stand by the drivers so that those kinds of accidents can be avoided.