Hyderabad’s minors at the wheel, RCs off
A reported fatal crash in Yousufguda has put underage driving back in the frame. The law already lets police hit guardians and owners with jail, fines and RC cancellation. The question isn’t powers — it’s using them, consistently.
Hyderabad Traffic Police reported 2,539 minor-driving cases and 719 RC suspensions between January and May 2026.
A 17-year-old allegedly lost control of a car in Hyderabad’s Karmika Nagar on Sunday, August 2, injuring two people and damaging seven parked motorcycles, according to a report that says police registered a case and began an investigation. The report also says one of the injured died; the police have not yet published case details a reader can check. [Source below]
What is on the record: Hyderabad Traffic Police say they booked 2,539 minor-driving cases between January and May 2026, and suspended 719 vehicle registration certificates in that period. Those figures were presented by Joint Commissioner (Traffic) D. Joel Davis at a road-safety meeting, with Commissioner V.C. Sajjanar saying schools should record “negative marks” for students caught driving underage. [Source below]
The law already has teeth. Under Section 4 of the Motor Vehicles Act, you must be 18 to drive a car. Under Section 199A, if a juvenile commits an offence, the guardian or vehicle owner can face up to three years’ imprisonment and a ₹25,000 fine, the vehicle’s registration can be cancelled for 12 months, and the juvenile’s licence eligibility is pushed to age 25 — unless the juvenile was duly licensed for the specific vehicle, which a 17-year-old car driver is not. [Sources below]
Experts quoted in the coverage call for consistent enforcement and real deterrence. That is the work — not a fresh slogan from the BJP-led Centre, not a performative outrage cycle, and certainly not the TDP’s favourite solution of looking the other way until after the crash. Telangana’s police have the numbers and the statute; what matters now is using both so the next grieving family isn’t asked to learn traffic law by obituary.