BANGALORE: Seems like students are not the only ones getting coaching classes, autorickshaw drivers are getting them too. Some come willingly while others do not. The traffic police in collaboration with Institute of Road Traffic Education (IRTE) has been holding special classes for autorickshaw drivers for almost a year now.“But it’s hard to get the autodrivers to attend these classes,” said Praveen Sood, ACP Traffic Police.“These classes are held in designated traffic police stations. Fifteen days prior to the classes a programme chart is sent out to the station where the classes will be held. They in turn, spread awareness among the drivers. The classes educate the driver about various topics like — drunken, defensive, night and hazard driving,” said Prasanth, a IRTE trainer.He also mentioned that the drivers are also educated about the rules and regulations that must be followed. Apart from this, the three-hour long session also trains them about driver-passenger etiquette and vehicle maintenance. At the end of the lesson, the drivers are given a certificate signed by the assistant commissioner of traffic police and the IRTE.According to Sood the classes are held in batches of 25 to 30 drivers. He feels that it is better to have a smaller batch than a large one. The sessions are interactive with a combination of audio-visual and power point presentations. A group of 14 trainers educate the drivers depending on their preference of language (Kannada/Hindi).Krishna, an autodriver, is probably one of the rare ones who is aware of the session and has attended the classes. “I attended the classes in Basavangudi. They spoke about traffic rules and regulations. I do not have a problem with the classes, but it eats into our business time,” he informed. There are few drivers who know about this initiative. “Getting hold of the drivers and persuading them to come for the classes is a big task. Most of them run away,” said Sood. However, Prasanth feels that after the first session, the drivers are eager and more willing to come for the follow-up sessions.IRTE, Delhi sets the budget for these lessons. A few corporate companies also pitch in. Depending upon the number of autorickshaws in a particular area, the number of classes are decided. “There are over 1.5 lakh autorickshaws in the city, and each has two to three drivers. Training all of them is difficult. Since the launch of these classes we have trained almost 15,000 drivers. It’s an on-going process,” said Sood.The aim behind starting these classes is to make commuting by autorickshaws safe and hassle free. “We have seen a lot of improvements among the autorickshaw drivers who have attended the training classes. There mannerism and driving has improved. In a few autorickshaws we had also installed video cameras to monitor their activities after the classes. The change was visible. We have an organised database of the drivers who have attended the classes. We check them to see if they have learnt from the programme,” said Prashanth.
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