Kandahar: Police in southern Afghanistan's Kandahar province have detained drivers without driving licenses and other documents to ensure safe driving of the commuters, provincial traffic police chief Mohammad Ayub said Sunday.

According to Namibia Press Agency, the initiative is being implemented in the wake of deadly road accidents on the Kandahar-Kabul highway over the past couple of months which had claimed scores of lives. The traffic police are also checking if drivers use intoxicants such as hashish before sitting behind the steering to ensure safety driving on the highway, Ayub added.

Traffic police have launched regular highway patrols to check the speed of passenger buses as well as verify driving licenses and permits. Ayub mentioned that over three dozen drivers have been apprehended so far and referred to concerned bodies for interrogation.

To ensure safe driving, the traffic police of the Afghan interim government have begun reconstruction of the highways, installing traffic signals as well as cameras on some roads in several provinces, including the capital city of Kabul.