BJP MP Alok Sharma distributes helmets as part of road safety measure ahead of Raksha Bandhan in Bhopal

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India], August 4 (ANI): As part of a road safety initiative aligned with Raksha Bandhan celebrations, BJP MP Alok Sharma distributed helmets to women in Bhopal, urging citizens to wear helmets and support the district administration's efforts to curb rising road accidents.
Speaking to ANI on Saturday, Sharma expressed concern over the increasing number of road accidents in Bhopal.
"Road accidents are increasing continuously in Bhopal. The district administration of Bhopal is serious and concerned about this. The district administration of Bhopal is continuously running awareness programs among the citizens of Bhopal to wear helmets. To make helmets compulsory, all petrol pump owners in Bhopal have been instructed to give petrol only to those citizens who come wearing helmets," he said.
He added, "The people of Bhopal have elected me as an MP. The festival of Raksha Bandhan is about to come, so today we have given helmets to the sisters."
In a decisive move to boost road safety, the Bhopal district administration has implemented a new policy that bars fuel stations from dispensing petrol or CNG to two-wheeler riders not wearing helmets.
The directive, aimed at enforcing traffic rules and reducing accident-related fatalities, is now in effect across all petrol pumps in the city. Fuel station staff have been instructed not to provide fuel to any two-wheeler rider found violating the helmet mandate.
Shailendra Kumar Singh, an employee at a petrol pump in the city, earlier said the new rule has led to unusual situations at fuel stations."Customers exchange helmets with each other. We appeal to them not to do so. We appeal to everyone to wear helmets. They argue with us. We are not giving petrol without a helmet, we are following the rules," he told ANI.
A local resident said, "I was not aware of this rule. I always wear a helmet. This rule is good."
Lalit, another Bhopal resident, strongly supported the regulation. "I always wear a helmet. It is necessary for our safety. I had two-three accidents, but my head was saved because of the helmet," he said, stressing the life-saving importance of helmets. (ANI)