Jaipur traffic police roll out SMS alerts for towed vehicles

Jaipur: After months of complaints from motorists struggling to trace their towed vehicles, the traffic wing of the Jaipur Commissionerate, Wednesday, introduced an automated SMS notification system to inform owners about the impound yard location immediately after towing.Around five months ago, Sodala resident Amitesh Sharma parked his car near Panch Batti Circle on MI Road and stepped into a nearby shop. When he returned, the vehicle was missing. After making inquiries with shopkeepers and pedestrians, he learnt that police had towed it away. He then had to walk to the nearest crossing to find a constable, who informed him that the car had been taken to the Bais Godam impound yard. Motorists like Sharma will no longer have to go through such confusion. Confirming the rollout, DCP (Traffic) Sumeet Meharda said the system came into effect Wednesday. "We have six to seven impounding yards across the city. Although after towing we take the vehicles to the nearest yard, many motorists are not aware of the locations of these yards. So, we have decided to launch this SMS alert for towed vehicles," Meharda said. Under the system, as soon as a vehicle is towed, an SMS will be sent to the mobile number registered with the vehicle. The message will include the vehicle's registration number and the location of the impound yard from where it can be collected. Impounding yards are located below GT Puliya (Malviya Nagar), behind Ramniwas Bagh, below 14 Number Puliya (VKI), below Jhotwara Puliya (Vidyadhar Nagar), below Khasa Kothi Puliya and below Bais Godam Puliya.