What\\\'s to be done to stop rash driving?

In the United States, there are billboards on highways in some of the states warning reckless drivers: "The man or the woman you might kill while driving a car may be your own father or mother." Such a message has a lightning effect on the psyche of persons at the driving seats. But sadly, it seems there is none either in the government or in the private sector to create mass awareness among drivers who cause avoidable deaths on roads in Bangladesh.
Unfortunately, Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury, a veteran journalist and a friend and Dhaka University batchmate of this writer, was virtually murdered by one such delinquent driver in the driving seat of a mini-bus at Kawran Bazar in the capital on Saturday. The untimely death of the well-known journalist, who was the consulting editor of the Financial Express and former Editor of the Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), has already sent shockwaves across the country.
In fact, every human life is precious, not Zaglul's alone. Almost daily, dozens are killed or maimed for life in road accidents. These mishaps could be averted had drivers been a little bit patient and skillful in driving their vehicles on busy roads and highways.
This scribe, a regular bus passenger, often advises drivers to go slow as he tells them that the steering they are holding at their seats could kill a man, if not driven carefully and cautiously. He himself narrowly escaped serious injury or death when the small Gabtoli-Gulistan bus he was aboard turned turtle at a U-turn at Asad Gate after the driver was running his vehicle towards Farmgate at a terrifying speed. The driver did not have the minimum intelligence quotient (IQ) that while taking a U-turn, he couldn't drive his vehicle at the same high speed as he could do on a straight road.      
The government has formed an inquiry committee to probe the death of Zaglul. The committee has been directed to file its report within three working days. Probe bodies are formed after every road accident in which prominent personalities lose their lives. But there has not yet been a respite from such deadly mishaps.
The recent move of the government to stop jaywalking is certainly a good one for the commuters' safety on the roads but then such attempts will finally be futile unless there is an extensive campaign to raise mass awareness and adequate footpaths are built. None is safe these days even on footpaths as nobody knows when a motor-cycle, ignoring the watchful eyes of the traffic police, will hit the pedestrians.
Drivers of motor-cycles apparently feel that they are free to move their vehicles in any way or in any speed they like through any part of the roads or the footpaths as they wish. There has not yet been any move or any mobile court to grill them. A sustained inspection by mobile courts for more than a month in different locations and imposition of heavy financial penalty or jail terms will go a long way in making the reckless motorcycle riders behave on the roads.
Just have a look at vehicles-buses and cars-driven by both professionals and owners. It is certain that there will be a gulf of difference in their styles of driving. While the professional driver, having little education, will be found to be reckless, the vehicle owners, mostly educated, will be seen driving their cars responsibly. Why is it so? This is because the professionals, mostly unemployed youth, take the drivers' seats having only six months to one year of training. Even many conductors turn drivers overnight in Bangladesh.
What is very vital is that drivers need to be more fit than their vehicles to drive. The BRTA gives annual fitness certificates to vehicles and mobile courts punish the jaywalkers but illiterate and half-educated drivers simply go scot-free. They appear to be beyond any fitness scrutiny. Moreover, the owners engage young and inexperienced drivers to pay lower wages.  
Punishment for delinquent drivers is very light and nominal to be taken seriously. Why should not deaths in road accidents be treated as murders? Only the other day the High Court restored the highest punishment for irresponsible driving to seven years' imprisonment from the existing three years. In its observation, the High Court also stated that the highest punishment for mindless leading to death should be more than seven years' imprisonment to ensure people's right to life. The highest penalty for death because of reckless driving was seven years' imprisonment as per the penal code until 1985, but then the law was amended and the punishment was commuted to three years' imprisonment in 1985.
The laws must be made more stringent in order to be a strong deterrent to mindless driving. When one reckless driver will be aware that his delinquent act, while driving, will invite severe punishment, he will learn to behave responsibly. Zaglul's death was simply due to such an irresponsible act of a driver who deserves severe punishment if he could be located, arrested and put on trial.  
arjayster@gmail.com