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China eyes harsher punishment on narcotics-influenced driving

Xinhua, March 25, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Ministry of Public Security (MPS) on Thursday announced that driving under the influence of drugs will soon be a criminal offense.

The MPS said driving after taking hard drugs posed a serious danger to the public, and punishments should be even harsher than drunk driving.

A total of 1,562 deaths and 4,934 injuries have been caused by driving under the influence of drugs since 2013, according to the MPS.

The police have been enhancing checks on drivers, and now can match their names with a driver database. Registered drug addicts are banned from driving.

So far, 140,000 driving licenses have been suspended because the holders failed to complete rehab or relapsed. Endit