Girls on a bike in Patna on Tuesday. Picture by Jai Prakash

Patna, Feb. 8: Having fun is not a bad thing, but pay heed to the rules of the road.

Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra’s advertisement of a scooty tells us about the fun bit, but ignores the more important second half.

Monday’s accident of Shweta Suman is not an isolated case. With increase in the use for two-wheelers among young girls, questions are being raised on the safety factor.

Shweta’s two-wheeler came under the bus of her own school, as it skidded on a patch of oil on the road.

Even though girls on bikes are no longer a rare sight, traffic police appear a little soft when it comes to taking girls to task.

Traffic deputy sub-inspector N.M. Jha said as women do not generally violate rules, the police were not as strict with them.

“We do stop them if they are travelling without a helmet or a licence, but usually we let them go. They are not law-breakers in general, so the police are a bit easy on them. But we do catch a few. They are not allowed to go every time. But the Monday incident is shocking,” he said.

“They do not drive at high speed. We do see many of them not wearing helmets while driving, but we usually let them go. Ladkiyan hai!” a traffic constable said.

Shops selling two-wheelers said lot of small bikes are sold every month.

“Last week, we sold at least 40 scootys. Parents come with their daughters, who look quite young. Then, a number of girls come here to enquire. We are not authorised to ask their age,” said Shaukat Ali, manager of Ghanshyam Dealers, in Kankerbagh area.

Patna traffic superintendent of police Ajit Kumar Sinha said there was a provision of issuing of driving licences to 16-year-old girls for driving vehicles without gears.

“For vehicles with gears, the minimum age for driving with a licence is 18 years. For the lighter, non-gear vehicle, a 16-year-old girl can get a licence. So if a 16-year-old girl is wearing a helmet and has a licence, what is wrong in that? It is the parents’ responsibility whether they are comfortable with letting their daughters hit the road,” he said.

Meanwhile, parents are stuck in between. “We cannot deny them a small vehicle. These days. children have to move about all the time. I know it is scary, but what do we do?” said A.S. Thakur, a bank employee and resident of Boring Road.