Road Accidents in India - 2018

• 20 Nov 2019

Why in News

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has released the annual report on Road Accidents in India.

• The report shows 53 crashes and the loss of 17 lives every hour.
• The road traffic injuries were the eighth leading cause of death in India in 2018.

Key Points

• Global Analysis:
  
  • According to World Road Statistics ( 2018), India reports the highest number of road accident deaths followed by the US and China.
    
    • World Road Statistics is released by the World Road Federation.
  • As per the WHO Global Report on Road Safety 2018, India accounts for almost 11% of the accident-related deaths in the world.
• National Analysis:
  
  • The road accidents numerics:
    • It kills almost 1.5 lakh people annually in India.
    • The accidents, as well as accident-related deaths in the period 2010-2018, dropped drastically compared with the previous decades, despite the very high rate of growth of automobiles.
    • The road accident severity (the number of persons killed per 100 accidents) has increased by 0.6% in 2018 compared to 2017.
  • Major Cause:
    
    • Over-speeding is a major cause, accounting for 64.4% of the persons killed. As the maximum number of road accidents occurred on straight roads.
    • Two-wheelers accounted for the highest share (35.2%) in total accidents in 2018.
  • Age:
    
    • The young adults (18-45 years) accounted for nearly 69.6% of road accident victims.
    • Minors involved in road crash deaths were at 6.6% of the total deaths.
  • Gender:
    
    • The share of males in the number of total accident deaths was 86% while the share of females was around 14% in 2018
• State-wise Analysis:
  
  • As in 2017, the State of Tamil Nadu recorded the highest number of road accidents in 2018.
  • Similarly, as in 2017, the number of persons killed in a road accident was the highest in Uttar Pradesh in 2018.
  • Delhi has been ranked first in the total number of road fatalities compared to other Indian cities.

Significance of Road Safety

• Road transport is the dominant mode of transport in India, in terms of traffic share and in terms of contribution to the national economy.
• A negative externality of expansion in the road network, motorization, and urbanization in the country is the increase in road accidents and road crash fatalities.
• Road traffic injuries are one of the leading causes of death, disabilities and hospitalization in the country imposing huge socio-economic costs.

Steps taken at Global Level

• Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety (2015):
  
  • The declaration was signed at the second Global High-Level Conference on Road Safety held in Brazil. The first conference was held in Russia (2009).
  • Through the Brasilia Declaration countries plan to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 3.6 i.e.to half the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents by 2030.
  • United Nations has also declared 2010-2020 as the decade of action for Road Safety.
• UN Global Road Safety Week:
  
  • It is celebrated every two years, the fifth edition of the UN Global Road Safety Week (6-12 May 2019) highlighted the need for strong leadership for road safety.
• The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) :
  
  • It is a registered charity dedicated to saving lives through safer roads.

Steps taken Indian Government

• India has signed the Brasilia declaration and committed to reduce the number of deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents.
• Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019
  
  • It hikes the penalties for traffic violations, defective vehicles, juvenile driving, etc.
  • It provides for a Motor Vehicle Accident Fund, which would provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India for certain types of accidents.
  • It also provides for a National Road Safety Board, to be created by the Central Government through a notification.
  • The act also provides for the protection of good samaritans.
• Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan Committee
  
  • Supreme Court had set up the three-member KS Radhakrishnan panel on road safety in 2014. The SC had termed the roads in India as “giant killers”

Source: TH