KARACHI: In what is being described as a first-of-its-kind initiative, city traffic police collected blood samples from five heavy vehicle drivers to determine if they are under the influence of drugs, officials said.

DIG-Traffic Pir Mohammed Shah told Dawn that it was for the first time in the history of the city that the traffic police carried out random drug tests of drivers of heavy vehicles with the help of lab staff.

He said heavy vehicles were stopped near Sher Shah, where law enforcers checked registration documents, driving licence and took blood samples of five drivers. He said that sealed samples were sent to the office of the chemical examiner.

When asked whether the traffic police were empowered to take blood samples on mere suspicions, he replied in the affirmative, but did not elaborate.

He said the drive meant to check whether the drivers were under the influence of drugs while driving. If their tests report came positive, then not only their driving licence would be cancelled but strict legal action would also be taken against the owners of the heavy vehicles.

DIG says law enforcers are authorised to collect blood samples based on suspicion

The DIG explained that the crackdown was launched because of an alarming rise in traffic accident deaths involving heavy vehicles.

He said that a couple of months ago a water tanker ran over and killed a motorcyclist and his full-time pregnant wife in a manner that she gave birth on the roadside to a baby who died minutes later. He said that investigators found that the accidents occurred due to the negligence of the driver who fell asleep.

He said after this the traffic police made arrangements for engaging a medical lab and its staff to ascertain to take drug tests of suspicious drivers.

When contacted, senior lawyer Mohammed Farooq told Dawn that there was no “illegality” in taking blood samples from drivers of heavy vehicles.

He said in other countries, the police also conduct random drug checks through breathalyzer to know whether the driver had alcohol in his/her system beyond permissible limit.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2025