Center Aims To Reduce Road Accident Deaths By 50 Percent

Center aims to reduce road accident deaths by 50 percent by 2024: Nitin Gadkari.

Road Transport and Highways and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Minister, Nitin Gadkari on Thursday said that the Center aims to reduce road accident deaths by 50 percent by the year 2024.

Addressing a virtual session on ‘Role of Corporates in Preventing Road Accidents’ organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).

Gadkari called upon the corporate body on the announcement of ‘Safar’, a road safety consortium based on a safe system.

The minister also stressed the need to identify ‘black spots’ in every state, district, and city and said that the World Bank and ADB have already approved a plan by which the Center is allocating Rs 14,000 crore to the states.

Center aims to reduce road accident deaths by 50 percent: National Highways Authority of India and other stakeholders should work to remove ‘black spots’.

The minister said that his ministry is working hard to reduce road accident deaths by restructuring and strengthening the four ‘E’ of road safety – engineering, economy, enforcement, and education.

He suggested that the corporate world should conduct an independent survey to identify the causes of accidents and a report may be submitted to NHAI.

The minister further informed that 50 percent of road accidents are due to road engineering problems and now the government has taken a special initiative to rectify the black spots.

He said that it will contribute immensely to the vision of ‘Zero Road Accidents’ in India. There is a need for the cooperation of NGOs, social organizations, universities for education and awareness.

Gadkari announced that an independent Road Safety Council headed by a retired IAS officer will come into force within 15 days.