Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Mains level: Road safety in India;
Why in the News?
The India Status Report on Road Safety 2024 highlights India’s slow progress in reducing road fatalities and stresses the need for tailored approaches to improve road safety.
What does the ‘India Status Report on Road Safety 2024’ state?
- The report highlights India’s limited success in reducing road accident fatalities, despite the country’s efforts in other sectors. The report stresses that most Indian States are not on track to meet the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety goal to halve traffic deaths by 2030.
- It emphasizes the connection between road construction, mobility, and safety,
- Road traffic injuries remain a significant public health challenge. In 2021, these injuries were the 13th leading cause of death and the 12th leading cause of health loss (measured in Disability-Adjusted Life Years or DALYs).
- The report reveals significant disparities in road traffic death rates across Indian States, with vulnerable groups such as motorcyclists and truck-involved crashes being particularly high.
Note: The report used FIR data from six States and audits of State compliance with Supreme Court directives on road safety.
Which States have the lowest rates of road accident deaths?
- West Bengal and Bihar have the lowest rates of road accident deaths, with 5.9 per 1,00,000 people in 2021
What is a crash surveillance system?
- A crash surveillance system is a national-level database that records detailed data on road accidents, including specific variables like the mode of transport of victims.
- India lacks such a system, with current data being aggregated from police station records, limiting the depth of analysis and effectiveness of interventions.
- Implementing this system would enhance road safety management and allow for better evaluation of policy interventions.
Way forward:
- Establish a National Crash Surveillance System: Implement a comprehensive database for road accidents to enable detailed analysis and improve targeted interventions for road safety. This would enhance data accuracy and guide more effective policies.
- Prioritize State-Specific Road Safety Strategies: Tailor interventions to the unique challenges of each State, focusing on vulnerable road users like motorcyclists and improving safety infrastructure, such as helmet usage, traffic calming, and trauma care facilities.
Get an IAS/IPS ranker as your 1: 1 personal mentor for UPSC 2024
