Nagpur: The Nagpur Traffic Police Department, led by DCP Lohit Matani, has reported an extensive enforcement drive under “Operation U-Turn” during January 2026, targeting dangerous driving practices to prevent fatal road accidents. The special campaign led to thousands of actions under the Motor Vehicles Act and relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

According to official data, police booked 891 motorists for drunk driving and took action against 2,168 drivers for driving on the wrong side of the road. Enforcement teams also penalised 1,361 triple-seat riders, 174 cases of rash driving, and nine incidents involving minor drivers. In addition, 2,859 heavy vehicles were penalised for various violations during naka-bandi (checkpoints) operations across traffic zones in the city.

Zone-wise Enforcement Highlights

The highest number of drunk driving cases were recorded in Sonegaon (150), followed by Lakadganj (122) and Sakkardara (103). In terms of action against heavy vehicles, MIDC (510) and Sonegaon (454) zones topped the list. Triple-seat violations were most prominent in MIDC (247) and Indora (148), while wrong-side driving was highest in MIDC (510) and Pardi (199) zones.

Authorities said the focused enforcement has yielded significant results in improving road safety.

Fatal Accidents See Major Decline

The traffic department noted a sharp decline in fatal accidents and deaths compared to January last year.

Month Fatal Accidents Deaths

January 2025 34 36

January 2026 14 15

Decrease 20 21

Percentage Drop 58.82% 58.33%

Officials attributed this reduction to strict enforcement, increased surveillance, and sustained awareness efforts under Operation U-Turn.