[josephilip]

Originally Posted by SPIKE ARRESTOR

Well I think there is:

1. It shows corruption is present in Kerala MVD and that it is deep rooted. We cannot say that soliciting bribes ends at Kerala border check posts and that bribes are sought only from overloaded vehicles and contract carriage buses.

2. MVD taking on helmet mounted cameras is a clear indication, they are preventing citizens from filming their possible verbal / physical abuse, targeted harassment, request for bribes on camera, which could be used against them as evidence.

Harassment from officials need not be always for money, they might have their reasons for behaving the way they do, does not however justify their acts.

Few months back while crossing the border from TN to Kerala at Kumily check post, I was harassed for 30 Minutes despite having all documentations ready. They didn't ask me for any money, but just wanted to harass me. The reason I believe was to discourage free movement of people at the border.

In such situations, when you are traveling alone in an unknown place, your only saving grace could be a video / audio recording. Tell me why else a Police Officer / MVD Officer would be uncomfortable talking with a citizen who has a body mounted or helmet mounted camera? Clearly for me, their intentions are not good.

I've had my fair share of interactions with Police / MVD officials, except a few good ones, most of them behave like demi Gods, as if the area Magistrate has conferred all his powers on them, to impart Justice to citizens instantaneously in a public place.



Good to know !

Spike

I kinda agree. I recently passed my driving test with the help of a driving school. The amount of bribe they collect in a single test day is absolutely bonkers. If you have ever talked to a police\mvd officer you will feel that they own the whole state and it was his kind mindset that allowed us to drive through "their" roads. There are a lot of nice police officers too, but in this day and age the amount of challans and the amount is unjustifiable. Last day my father got a challan for Rs500 while going to get a package from a courier station. Again, the recent ebulljet issue has been used as a tool by medias to get attention. They may not be saints and their van might not be exactly legal. We still don't know why their van was taken in the first place. I believe there are big political parties playing behind this. Helmet mounts may not be 100% safe but it is a necessity to a person who rides bikes as our roads are filled with people who do not know how to drive\behave properly on the road.
Media played a major role in this case, making this such a mess. But, let me get one thing straight, there are a lot of teens on instagram who upload rash driving videos to get views, which is absolutely not justifiable. They have to be cracked down regardless. Not everyone is a saint but that doesn't mean everyone is devil!

[Gypsian]

It appears that there is a new circular in place , issued by Kerala MVD, pertaining to penalising riders using helmet camera. Refer the below link for more details https://www.cartoq.com/helmet-camera...of-kerala/amp/

[pramodkumar]

Originally Posted by josephilip

I kinda agree. I recently passed my driving test with the help of a driving school. The amount of bribe they collect in a single test day is absolutely bonkers.

The driving schools make it a practice to collect bribes, however try messing up the test and see if your bribe helps. There are MVDIs who pay bribes to get into RTOs such as KL 01 AKA Trivandrum RTO, There are MVDIs who dont take a single rupee as bribe, its all about their upbringing. No MVDI, regardless they take a bribe or not wont clear your license without a test, Try going without a Driving school and you will be surprised how cheap it is to get a license.

I personally like using agents to do my paperwork for 2 reasons

1. I don't have the time to go and get things done personally.
2. Agents do a extremely good job in verifying and arranging the documents well and that really helps the MVDI who is already pressed for time, agents also act as a first level of scrutiny for your documents

Its usually about perspective.

Originally Posted by josephilip

Last day my father got a challan for Rs500 while going to get a package from a courier station.

Care to disclose why?

Pramod

[pjbiju]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

The provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 and Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989 apply to the entire country. There is no law banning such cameras in helmets.

...

Originally Posted by clevermax

Interesting perspective. However, I don't think a good quality helmet with a camera mounting point is structurally weak than one without a mounting point. A well-designed mounting point shouldn't be a significant factor in its structural integrity. I may be wrong.

Now, Kerala MVD's point is different altogether - they say that a rider with a camera will be focusing on filming than riding, thereby making it unsafe for him/her and others. This may be true for social media addicts. Unfortunately the rule will affect those riders who use the camera for other purposes such as the dashcam use case. Kerala MVD will start seeing anyone with a helmet mounted camera as YouTuber / Social media junkie.

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The police force in India is only around 2.7 million strong giving us a ratio of police per 100,000 population of an unbelievably low ~20 to a lakh of people. ... There are simply not enough police to monitor on a case by case basis especially given that some of them are forever needed for VIP duties and some are busy filling their pockets.

...These vloggers are a nuisance and a danger to themselves and others. ...The road is a public property, like a garden . If you wish to use it follow the rules and don't justify your mis-conduct. Likely this won't be a popular view on Team BHP but I believe I speak for the silent majority.

There is a news article published today saying that this news is true. The article is in Malayalam.

What the article says is as per section 6.1.3 of IS4151:1993, attaching anything/modifying the helmet is not allowed unless the helmet passes all certification tests after the modification/adding of attachments.

6.1.3 No component or device shall be fitted to or incorporated in the protective helmet unless it is designed in such a way that it shall not
cause injury and that, when it is fitted to or incorporated in the protective helmet, the helmet still complies with the requirements of this standard

So technically, the MVD is right because I do not think any of the helmets are tested with cameras attached to them.

In addition they say that attaching cameras to helmets will lead to distraction of the rider. And this violates Section 5.3 of Motor Vehicle Driving Regulation 2017 which states the following:

(3) The driver shall at all times maintain a good lookout and concentrate on the road and the traffic and avoid any activity which distracts, or is likely to distract, his attention

Folks who would like to still have a camera, can have them on the bike or have them as body mounted (on jackets etc.). I hope those will not be considered as violations. Given what V Narayan has written, sometimes, the law enforcement agencies have no choice but to come up with such rules/blanket bans.

[clevermax]

Whilst the Kerala MVD is preoccupied with looting money from those who have the means to pay fines, they are turning a blind eye to infractions that have a direct correlation with road safety. For example, the number of two-wheelers that lack a working tail lamp is staggering!

It is commendable that a directive was issued by the Joint Transport Commissioner, instructing Regional Transport Offices to levy penalties on those who ride without a functioning tail lamp:



MVD officials are yet to carry out such inspections. Were they to do so, it is highly likely that a significant number of these ignorant riders would fix their tail lamps. But who wants to improve road safety!