Road safety dept on the anvil

Road safety dept on the anvil
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Highlights

With an aim to bring down road accidents in the state and take more corrective measures, the Telangana government has decided to create a separate department for road safety.

Hyderabad: With an aim to bring down road accidents in the state and take more corrective measures, the Telangana government has decided to create a separate department for road safety.

The move comes after the State Road Safety Council (SRSC), which met three times recently, has recommended setting up of a separate department to check road accidents.

According to a nationwide database, Telangana accounts for one per cent of the countrywide vehicles (88 lakh) but 10 per cent of the accidents occur in the state.

About 22,000 accidents occurred during the last year and close to 7,000 had died. As per the database, 77 per cent deaths take place on national and state highways due to rash and high speed driving. Another main reason is drunken-driving.

According to officials, the SRSC has suggested certain measures to bring down the death rate due to accidents to at least 50 per cent by 2020 and become an inspiration to other states in the country. The council opined that the road safety should not be restricted to transport department but should include departments like RTC, Roads, Panchayat Raj, Health, Education and Excise.

As per the council’s recommendations, the government proposes to provide special patrolling vehicles to 50 police stations along the national highways apart from providing special trauma care ambulances on the lines of 108.

GPS technology would be used in these trauma care ambulances. Council also wanted the state government to bring strict laws without compromising on the security.The council members opined that the growing number of cases registered against the violators indicates that most of the motorists do not care for the rules.

Around eight lakh cases were registered under drunken driving, 12 lakh cases were registered for over speeding, 4 lakh for driving two-wheelers without wearing helmet during the last year. The council wanted amendment to the Act and ensure wine shops were not there on the highway and also to see that belt shops do not come up near the highways. The council wanted the officials to study roads where frequent accidents take place and take corrective measures.

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