Road safety is unquestionably a matter of serious concern across the globe. In India, this issue continues to gain troubling proportions. While the government has been working in full swing to address this matter of contention, it may be a while till we see a steady and positive change in the country.
A recently government study concluded that Mumbai observed the most number of road accidents in the country last year. While the number of fatalities as a consequence of such mishaps is the highest in the national capital - Delhi. The 'Road Accidents in India' report states, "Mumbai had the highest number of 23,468 number of road accidents during 2015 while Delhi had the highest number of 1,622 deaths due to road accidents."
In the nearly 5 lakh road accidents in the country last year, 1.46 lakh people were killed. Thirteen states accounted for 87.2 per cent of the total number of road accidents in India in 2015, including Tamil Nadu Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, etc..
Delving further into details, two-wheelers accounted for roughly one-third, the highest, of the total road accidents in India in 2015. Next on the list are passenger cars and taxis.
Here is a summary of the alarming statistics:
Road Accidents:
a. 11.4 per cent of the total road accidents were hit and run
b. Overloaded vehicles caused 77,116 accidents and 25,199 deaths
c. In 2015, 28.4 per cent accidents occurred on National Highways, 24 per cent on State Highways, and 47.6 per cent on other roads
Cause of Road Accidents:
a. Driver's fault accounted for 77 per cent of total accidents in 2015, out of which 62.2 per cent were caused due to exceeding speeding
b. The 'driver's fault' category also included 4.2 per cent accidents due to intake of alcohol/ drugs
Deaths due to road accidents:
a. 33 per cent of people killed in crashes belonged in the age bracket of 15-24 years
b. Out of the total deaths due to road accidents in 2015, 35 per cent occurred on National Highways
c. The overall share of accidents and deaths caused due to consumption of alcohol/ drugs stands at 3.3 per cent
d. In the 57,083 reported cases of hit and run, about 20,709 people were killed
(With inputs from PTI)
