Ban use of unauthorised strobe lights, hooters, Supreme Court directs governments

NEW DELHI: Supreme Court has directed governments to enforce a complete ban on unauthorised red-blue strobe flashing lights and illegal hooters through seizure, market crackdowns and penalties. It has also instructed the , and traffic police authorities to prescribe the maximum permissible luminance and beam angles for vehicle headlights and ensure strict compliance.

The court’s order was part of a number of directives issued by a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan this week to make Indian roads safer. The court has instructed that compliance with norms relating to permissible luminance and beam angles for vehicle headlights be done through “checks during PUC testing and vehicle fitness certification". It has also sought targeted drives against non-compliant or modified headlights.

The Supreme Court took note of the risks that widespread use of dazzling white LED headlights, unauthorised red-blue strobe lights and hooters that imitate emergency sirens pose to road users. It also recorded the fact that red-blue strobe lights, intended exclusively for authorised emergency vehicles, are increasingly being used on private vehicles as they are freely available in the market.

“Such misuse creates a false sense of authority, intimidation, and panic among pedestrians and other road users. Drivers may react abruptly, slow down unnecessarily, or make erratic manoeuvres, creating traffic disruptions and raising accident risk. Pedestrians may freeze, retreat, or take unsafe evasive actions, increasing their exposure to injury. The unauthorised use of these lights and siren-like hooters also undermines respect for genuine emergency services, diluting the authority and effectiveness of legitimate responders during critical situations,” the court said.

The Supreme Court also directed govts to hold officials and contractors personally liable in cases of pedestrian deaths caused due to infrastructural or design failures. The number of pedestrian deaths in road crashes has risen in the past few years, with over 1.4 lakh pedestrians being killed between 2019 and 2023.

The Supreme Court directed the authorities to invoke Section 198A of the Motor Vehicles Act in such cases. The provision introduced in 2019 specifies that the designated authority, contractor, consultant or concessionaire will be punishable with a fine of up to Rs 1 lakh, if failure to comply with standards for road design, construction and maintenance results in death or disability. However, there has not been a single instance when this provision was enforced and penalty imposed in the past six years.

“The directive to hold people accountable is important as at present it’s easy to pass the buck. But to enforce this, there must be a proper scientific investigation into any crash and there is need to create capacity of engineers and in the enforcement authorities,” said road safety expert Rohit Baluja.

The court’s order for establishment of a simple and effective online grievance redressal mechanism by landowning agencies to deal with complaints pertaining to lack of maintenance of footpaths and the requirement of pedestrian crossings is also crucial considering there is no such system in place at present. The Supreme Court instructed the authorities to respond to complaints within a specified timeframe and ensure they are addressed in a time-bound manner.

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