Making Roads Safer

Earlier this week, road safety month was launched in India including Jammu and Kashmir. It aims to build awareness about road safety and reduce accidents. Various programmes are scheduled to create awareness about accidents and measures to prevent them. Large scale education and training programmes for the drivers as well learners are important. While awareness is a good tool, it cannot be said to be the only means to prevent accidents.
Hardly any day passes when one does not come across tragic news about an accident happening in Jammu and Kashmir. Road accidents are a major cause of deaths, and injuries every year. As per the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, in 2019, at least 4,37,396 road accidents were recorded in India, resulting in the death of 1,54,732 persons and injuries to another 4,39,262 persons. Jammu and Kashmir has gained the notoriety of being amongst the states or UTs having the highest percentage of unnatural deaths including due to accidents in the country. 1009 people died in 5839 road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir last year. As per the latest NCRB report, 364 people died in 2140 road accidents on highways followed by 118 deaths elsewhere.
While some general causes like error attributed to drivers including reckless driving, overloading, poor condition of vehicles, etc. are prevalent almost across the country, the accidents in J&K can be attributable to factors like dilapidated and narrow roads, common ignorance about traffic laws and lack of knowledge about safe driving principles. Historically, people and administration has been quite slow in taking effective steps to improve the engineering of roads
There is a need for the transition to a professional road environment which requires the implementation of first-tier reforms that deal with the quality of road infrastructure, facilities for susceptible users and zero-tolerance enforcement of rules by a trained, professional and empowered machinery.
Scientific road system marked by good engineering, strict enforcement, appropriate technology use and respect for all road users is the need of the hour and steps should be taken towards achieving it.
The safety measures should be strictly implemented, failing which accidents will continue unabated.
The perception that one can get away with serious road traffic transgressions needs to be challenged through deterrent enforcement.
Also to save lives on highways, quality trauma care at the district level holds the key. No significant improvement is possible in the quest to save life and limb unless trauma care is created and upgraded as regards the quality.

 

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