Over 2,730 motorists booked for drunk driving across Hyderabad on New Year’s Eve

Drunk driving cases across Hyderabad saw a 5% decline on New Year’s Eve, with a total of 2,731 motorists booked across the city and its suburbs, compared with 2,873 cases recorded during celebrations last year. Despite intensive enforcement and a visible police presence, the night was not accident-free, with two fatal road accidents reported in the Cyberabad and erstwhile Rachakonda commissionerates, though police clarified that neither was directly linked to New Year celebrations.

1,198 drunk driving cases in Hyderabad

The Hyderabad commissionerate led the charts with 1,198 drunk driving cases, however down from 1,415 cases in 2024. The highest number of cases were detected under DCP–III limits, which accounted for 490 bookings. Malakpet emerged as the single largest hotspot in the city with 125 cases, followed by Santosh Nagar with 63. Chandrayangutta and Saidabad reported 49 and 44 cases respectively, while Falaknuma recorded the lowest in the zone with nine cases. Mirchowk police booked 15 cases.

DCP–I limits accounted for 392 cases. S.R. Nagar stood out with 111 cases, the second-highest tally for any single station across Hyderabad. Begumpet and Punjagutta reported 52 cases each, while Trimulgherry booked 49. Banjara Hills recorded 26 cases, among the lower figures in this zone.

Under DCP–II limits, a total of 316 cases were booked. Chilkalguda Traffic Police Station led the zone with 56 cases, followed by Kachiguda with 47 and Chikkadpally with 45. Abids recorded 20 cases and Gandhinagar 29. Interestingly, Marredpally, Bowenpally and Narayanaguda traffic police stations reported zero cases during the special drive.

The special enforcement drive was carried out throughout the night, with around 1,000 traffic personnel deployed across 217 key junctions and intersections to regulate traffic and conduct breath analyser tests. Seven additional platoons were deployed to strengthen the existing force, while intensive checking is being carried out at 120 locations until 6 a.m. on Thursday.

605 cases in erstwhile Rachakonda

In the erstwhile Rachakonda commissionerate, 605 motorists were booked driving under the influence of alcohol. Here, Traffic Zone-I accounted for 316 cases, while Traffic Zone-II recorded 289.

Within Zone-I, the Malkajgiri division emerged as the biggest contributor with 260 cases. Uppal alone accounted for 126 cases, the highest for any single station in the commissionerate. Malkajgiri Traffic Police Station followed with 60 cases, while Kushaiguda booked 41. Jawaharnagar reported just nine cases, among the lowest in the zone. In the Bhongir division, 46 cases were booked, with Bhongir Traffic Police Station accounting for 21 and Yadadri Traffic Police Station 11.

In Traffic Zone-II, the L.B. Nagar division recorded the highest number with 238 cases. L.B. Nagar Traffic Police Station booked 123 cases, narrowly ahead of Vanasthalipuram, which reported 115. Maheshwaram Division recorded 46 cases, while Ibrahimpatnam booked 26.

Most offenders in 21-30 & 31-40 age groups

Age-wise data from Rachakonda shows that the bulk of offenders were in the 21–30 and 31–40 age groups, with 255 and 181 cases respectively. Another 100 violators were in the 41–50 age bracket. Very few cases involved drivers above 60 years of age, and no minors were booked.

Blood alcohol concentration levels revealed that the highest number of offenders fell in the 51–100 mg/100 ml and 101–150 mg/100 ml ranges, with 262 and 141 cases respectively. Police also flagged extreme intoxication levels in several cases, with the highest BAC recorded at 550 mg/100 ml in Vanasthalipuram, and 447 mg/100 ml in Bhongir.

Two-wheelers accounted for the majority of cases in Rachakonda, with 511 motorcyclists and scooter riders booked. Four-wheelers accounted for 80 cases, while 14 cases involved three-wheelers. No cases involving lorries or trucks were reported, and all those booked were male drivers.

A fatal road accident was reported in the Rachakonda limits in the early hours of January 1. One man was killed and three others injured when a car rammed into a lorry near milestone 92 at Tharamathipet in Abdullapurmet around 2.30 am. The car, carrying four men from Moinabad towards Edullagudem village via the Outer Ring Road (ORR), hit the lorry from the rear.

The deceased was identified as 40-year-farmer Chinnam Venkatesham, who died on the spot due to the impact, while 30-year-old P. Lingaswamy, sustained serious injuries. The driver, Guniganti Naresh, and another passenger, Kontam Srinivas, suffered minor injuries and were shifted to a private hospital in Hayathnagar. A case has been registered by Abdullapurmet police and an investigation is underway.

928 drunk driving cases in Cyberabad

In the Cyberabad commissionerate, that houses the IT corridor, 928 motorists were booked for driving under the influence of alcohol. A fatal accident was also reported in this jurisdiction around 10 p.m. on December 31 near the Botanical Garden in Gachibowli. Police said that the accident was not directly linked to New Year celebrations.

As many as 55 special teams were deployed across the commissionerate as part of the New Year enforcement. Two-wheelers accounted for the bulk of violations with 695 cases, followed by 199 four-wheelers, 31 three-wheelers and three heavy vehicles. Police said driving licences of all offenders would be seized and forwarded to the respective Regional Transport Authorities for suspension under the Motor Vehicles Act.

Data shared by the traffic police revealed that 419 motorists recording blood alcohol levels above 100 mg/100 ml, 35 above 300 mg/100 ml and five exceeding 500 mg/100 ml. The highest number of cases were detected within the traffic police station limits of Miyapur, RC Puram, Raidurgam, Gachibowli, Kukatpally, Medchal, Narsingi, Rajendranagar and KPHB.

Senior police officials said the dip in drunk driving cases indicated improved awareness but stressed that enforcement would remain strict in the coming weeks, warning that even a single instance of drunken driving could have fatal consequences.