Road Accidents in India

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Infrastructure: Road

Source: The Hindu,

Context: The recent unfortunate death of Cyrus Mistry (former chairman of Tata Sons) has put a spotlight on Road accidents in India

Status (as per the latest NCRB data)

• • • Deaths in road accidents up by 17%
    • In 2021, 1.55 lakh people died in accidents on Indian roads, up from 1.33 lakh in 2020
    • A maximum number of cases were reported in Tamil Nadu.
    • Reasons: Speeding accounted for over half of all deaths, while dangerous and careless driving caused over 42000 deaths.

Mechanisms to prevent death in a car accident?

• • • The three-point seat belt is a low-cost restraint system that prevents occupants of a vehicle from being thrown forward in a crash.
      • Seat belt: slows the occupant at the same rate as the vehicle, distributing the physical force in a crash across the stronger parts of the body such as the pelvis and chest.
      • The Road Transport Ministry said that during 2017, a shocking 26,896 people lost their lives due to the non-use of seat belts with 16,876 of them being passengers.
    • Seat Belt+ Airbag: Even if the vehicle is fitted with an airbag, the force at which an unrestrained occupant strikes the airbag can cause serious injuries. So, the seatbelt works in tandem with the airbag.
      • air-bag deployment reduced mortality by 63% (IIT Delhi Study)
    • Head restraints, which are found either as adjustable models or moulded into the seats, prevent a whiplash injury (sudden backwards and forward movement of head-on collision)

Indian regulation:

• • • Ministry of Road Transport and Highways issued a draft notification providing for three-point seat belts to be provided in all vehicles (up to 8-seater vehicles)
    • The Amended Motor Vehicles Act of 2019 requires the occupants of a passenger vehicle to wear a seat belt for driver and passenger or else there’s a fine.
      • Evidently, although cars are equipped with seat belts, the enforcement for rear seat occupants is virtually absent in India.

What should be done:  

• • • Institute evidence-based, India-specific and effective road safety policies
    • Better road design and maintenance of road and traffic infrastructure
    • Removal of medians on intercity highways and replacement with steel guard rails or wire rope barriers
    • Awareness of the use of seat belts and installing airbags
    • Use of the European Union’s General Safety Regulation that requires new vehicles to incorporate advanced emergency braking technology that launches automatically when a collision is imminent.

Insta Links 

Editorial: Road Accidents

Mains Links

Link it with governance (GS2) as well as Infrastructure issues (GS3) 

Q. Road traffic accidents are a leading cause of death in India, and a major contributor to socio-economic losses, disability burden, and hospitalization. Discuss (15M)