WHO launches road safety campaign in Hyderabad

Focus on driving without consuming alcohol, and wear a helmet

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, with the support of traffic police, launched a multimedia road safety campaign in Hyderabad and Vijayawada on Thursday.

The objective of this campaign is to enable the audience contemplate and avoid risky behaviour related to road safety, especially towards drunken-driving and the use of helmet.

In her message, Dr Nata Menabde, WHO representative to India, said, “Road traffic injuries are a growing public health and development concern, disproportionately affecting vulnerable group of road users, including the poor. More than half the people killed in traffic crashes are young adults aged between 15 and 44 - often the breadwinners in a family.”

“We call for greater action towards promoting a culture of road safety in our society to save lives on the roads,” she added.

Road traffic injuries are the ninth leading cause of death globally and the leading cause of deaths for young people aged between 15 and 29. Current trends suggest that by 2030, road traffic deaths will become the fifth leading cause of death unless urgent action is taken. India accounts for about 10 per cent of road crash fatalities worldwide. Approximately 1,40,000 people die every year, with hundreds of thousands more being injured due to road crashes.

As per the 2013 report of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, 28.6 per cent of the people dying on Indian roads are motorcycle riders; a large proportion of these deaths result from injuries to the head. Wearing a motorcycle helmet correctly can result in reduction of risk of death by 40 per cent and reduction of risk of severe injury by 70 per cent.

The consumption of alcohol, even in modest amounts, impairs the functioning of several processes required for safe road use, including vision and motor skills and increases the risk of being involved in a crash for motorists and pedestrians. Experiences of various countries show that strictly enforcing a law against drunk-driving can reduce the number of road deaths by 20 per cent.

The campaign is part of a road safety initiative in nine countries including India, being implemented by the World Health Organisation with a consortium of international partners (Global Road Safety Partnership, Johns Hopkins University, EMBARQ-India, and World Bank), national / state governments and local organisations, over a five year period (2010-2014), with support by Bloomberg Philanthropies Global Road Safety initiative launched under the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020, which covers more than 100 countries, with one goal: to prevent five million road traffic deaths globally by 2020.

During this campaign, evidence-based advocacy/awareness generation material will be disseminated through TV, cinema, radio, cable and print media along with outdoor innovations. This includes street play, activities around major intersections and distribution of promotional material across the city. A call to action message has also been given in the collaterals.