The ‘India Status Report on Road Safety 2024‘ prepared by the TRIP Centre at IIT Delhi, highlights the lack of focus on road safety in India. The report highlights India’s slow progress toward meeting international goals of reducing road accident fatalities. The report also emphasises on the organic connection between road construction, mobility, and the need for a differentiated approach to mitigate road accidents.
What are the observations of the Report?
This report analyses road safety in India, using data from First Information Reports (FIRs) from States and audits of state compliance with Supreme Court directives on road safety governance. It exposes disparities in road traffic death rates across states.
| Road accidents remain a major public health challenge | Road traffic injuries remain a major public health challenge in India. There has been little progress in reducing fatalities, despite advancements in other sectors. Road traffic injuries were the 13th leading cause of death in India and the 12th leading cause of health loss (measured in Disability-Adjusted Life Years, or DALYs) in 2021. |
| Indian states unlikely to miss the UN target | Most Indian States are unlikely to meet the United Nations Decade of Action for Road Safety goal to halve traffic deaths by 2030. |
| States with road accidents | Road traffic injuries ranked among the top 10 causes of health loss, in six states of Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh. |
| Most common victims of road accidents | Pedestrians, cyclists, and motorised two-wheeler riders are the most common victims of road accidents. Trucks are responsible for the highest proportion of impacting vehicles. |
| Lack of Basic Traffic Measures | India lacks basic traffic safety measures like traffic-calming, markings, and signage. Helmet usage in rural areas is particularly low, and trauma care facilities are inadequate. |
| Increase in India’s road accident fatalities | India has large gap in road safety as compared with other developed countries like Sweden and other Scandinavian nations, which have excelled in road safety governance. An Indian was 40% more likely to die in a road accident than someone in these countries, in 1990. By 2021, this figure had soared to 600%, indicating a sharp rise in road fatalities. |
What are the reasons for the increase in Road accidents?
According to the report, the reasons for the increase in road accidents are mentioned below-
1. Human errors and Traffic Rules Violations- Over speeding is the major cause and it accounts for 71.2 percent of the persons killed in 2022. Driving on the wrong side is the second reason accounting for 5.4 per cent deaths.
2. Faulty Road Designs- Faulty road engineering leading to black spots, poor designing of junctions, inadequate signage, haphazard planning of state highways and city roads are also some major factors causing road accidents.
3. Weak Vehicle Safety Standards in India- Crash tests carried out by the Global New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) in 2014 revealed that some of India’s top-selling car models failed the UN (United Nations)’s frontal impact crash test.
4. Lack of Golden Hour Treatment- Lack of rapid trauma care on highways leads to high fatalities.
5. Low awareness- Indians have very low awareness regarding the importance of safety features like airbags, Anti lock braking system, safety belt usage etc.
6. Absence of a crash surveillance system- India’s national road safety data systems are insufficient for guiding public policy. Currently, there is no national crash-level database for crash detection.
What are the impacts of road accidents in India?
1. Economic Impact- As per the World Bank report, Indian economy looses 3 to 5 percent of its GDP each year due to road accidents.
2. Social Impact- Vulnerable Road Users (VRUs) like the male urban poors, account for more than half of all road crash deaths and serious injuries in the country. These accidents further push them into extreme poverty as they are pushed out of employment.
3. Gender-Specific Impact- According to World Bank’s report “Traffic Crash Injuries and Disabilities: The Burden on Indian Society 2021”, about 50% of Indian women were severely affected by the decline in their household income after a crash.
What measures have been taken in India to reduce road accidents?
1. Formulation of National Road Safety Policy (NRSP), 2010- The policy was formulated based on the recommendations of S Sundar Committee. Some important highlights are-
(a) Establishment of Road Safety Information Database.
(b) Periodical review of road design standards and Vehicle safety standards.
(c) Creation of a National Road Safety Council to supervise matters related to road safety.
2. Establishment of District Road Safety Committees (DRSC)- Established under the Section 215 of the Motor Vehicle Act of 1988. These have been entrusted with creation of a district road safety plan and an emergency medical plan.
3. Passage of Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act 2019- GOI has tried to enhance the road safety measures through this act.
(a) Creating a National Road Safety Board to advise the government on traffic management. (b) Higher fines for traffic rule violations.
(c) Recalling defective vehicles which are dangerous for the environment and people.
(d) Creation of a ‘Solatium Fund’ for victims of hit-and-run accidents.
(e) Punishment to the owner for violations committed by Juvenile.
(f) Automated testing for driver’s licence and fitness certificate (FC).
(g) Protection of Good Samaritans from civil and criminal liability.
Read More- Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act 2019
4. Other technical initiatives- Further more, other technical initiatives have been taken which are mentioned below-
(a) Front and side crash tests for new car models.
(b) New cars are required to have airbags fitted as standard.
(c) Installation of Roadside Safety Crash barriers and speed warning boards.
(d) Rectification of identified Black spots.
| Some global initiatives for Road Safety Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety (2015)- India is a signatory to the Declaration. The countries plan to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3.6 i.e., to halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents by 2030. Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030- The UN General Assembly adopted resolution “Improving global road safety” with the ambitious target of preventing at least 50% of road traffic deaths and injuries by 2030. |
What measures must further be adopted to reduce road accidents in India?
1. Indian Vehicles safety features must conform to global best standards- The European Union’s General Safety Regulation which prescribes features like advanced emergency braking technology and intelligent speed assistance must be adopted in India.
2. Implementation of the important recommendations of the KS Radhakrishnan panel on Road Safety– The important ones are
(a) Compulsory Audit on road safety by the state governments
(b) Creating awareness among people on road safety rules, insurance policies
(c) Providing enough compensation to victims on time.
3. Separation of lanes for different types of Vehicles- There should be separation of lanes for 2-Wheelers and heavy vehicles.
4. Strict implementation of the existing rules-The enhanced fines for traffic rules violations will also help in reduction of road accidents in India.
5. Database for fatal crashes- A national database for fatal crashes should be established. The central and the state governments must undertake efforts towards it.
The approach to road safety has to be proactive, rather than reactive. The public has as much role to play as the Government. A concerted and focused effort from both the government and the citizens can help bring down road accidents and help save precious lives.
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