Road Safety World Series to drive social change in the country
Cricket will work as an ideal platform to influence and change people’s mind set towards their behaviour on the roads
Quality of cars are improving day by day, number of cars are also i ncreasing every day, the roads are getting better t oo, but maintenance of the roads and other infrastructures which are required for smooth sailing of these sophisticated vehicles have not been able to keep pace with t he progress all around. Not only that, many basic necessities are not in place to curb human loss of life when an accident takes place on Indian roads. Basic necessities like a mobile hospital on the highway, proper signage on the highways, adequate and necessary i nfrastructure for pedestrians or even the basic knowledge among people to assist with proper first aids if someone comes across a road-accident victim on the road.
These are some of the reasons why the Road Safety World Series, to be played in various Indian cities from February 2, 2020 featuring legends like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Brian Lara, Brett Lee and many more, gains so much more importance when one keeps the broader picture in mind. The Road safety World Series will be an annual cricket tournament which is being organized in the country to promote awareness towards road safety. The tournament will feature participation of all cricketing legends from five countries, namely, India, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.
Putting together a league of this stature is no easy task but Mr Ravi Gaikwad, RTO Chief of Thane (Konkan range) has come forward to promote this cause of road safety along with the legendary Sunil Gavaskar and his company Professional Management Group ( PMG); Mr Sudhanshu Vats, Group CEO and MD, Viacom 18 which will broadcast the matches live on Colours Cineplex and will also be streamed via the Voot and Jio platforms; Mr Jayant Mhaiskar, MD of construction giant MEP which is responsible for making most roads and highway infrastructures in India who is joining this movement as the road safety ambassador for the South African team and Mr Jashan Singh of Navyug Industries who is joining this movement as the road safety ambassador for the Indian team.
The aim of the Road Safety World Series, is to drive social change in the country in terms of our outlook towards road safety. As cricket is the most followed sport in the country and cricketers are looked upon as idols for many, we believe the sport will work as an ideal platform to influence and change people’s mind set towards their behaviour on the roads.
CRICKET AS THE MEDIUM TO PROMOTE ROAD SAFETY
“One things that runs very deeply in every Indians DNA is cricket. The reach of this game and the following of its stars are phenomenal. We Indians really eat, sleep and breathe cricket. The Road Safety World Series is not just a cricket tournament but a platform to achieve a much greater goal towards humanity as a whole. This is an event to create awareness towards eliminating the causes behind the malaise, and of course, the great comeback of the legends,” said Mr Ravi Gaikwad, who himself was an Under-15, 17 and 19 cricketer and was selected for the Ranji Trophy camp.
Mr Ravi Gaikwad, who was a H.SC. topper, engineering gold medallist and a scientist before he joined the RTO and started working towards creating awareness on road safety said, “Even the fitness of a vehicle is of utmost importance when it comes to safety of individuals travelling on the road. But if you look around, you will see that a number of vehicles which are plying on the road are not at all fit to be there in the first. As a scientist, I can also tell you what kind of vehicles would be safe on the highway where everyone is speeding beyond 100/kmph.”
“People should not wait for the administration alone to create awareness towards road safety and start shaming people riding without a helmet, or riding triple, or speeding…. At least, this is a good way to start,” added Mr Ravi Gaikwad, chairman of Shant Bharat Surakshit Bharat trust which organized a T20 cricket match with BCCI’S permission between the current Indian players to create awareness towards no honking and it was very well received by the cricket-loving people of Mumbai. Some of the current Indian cricketers like Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Suresh Raina and Jasprit Bumrah among others took part in that match. Mr Ravi Gaikwad also played in that match.
Mr Ravi Gaikwad, who has two Guinness Records in his name, one for the largest handball class and another for the largest road safety class, further added: “The Honourable High Court has now passed an order which makes any vehicle carrying weight beyond a certain capacity a serious offence and a FIR can be filed against it because overweight vehicles causes serious damage to the roads and other infrastructures (meaning damage to property).”
In line with the High Court order, the Maharashtra Government has also set up the 250m Brake Test Track, they have also started doing fitness test of vehicles in front of camera and a number of stringent rules and regulations are in place. But, the department of health should step in to make arrangements for providing first aid to accident victims immediately than it is happening now. The education department can come in and introduce road safety lessons in the school curriculum and take it to a micro influencer level.
WHY IS AWARENESS TOWARDS ROAD SAFETY SO IMPORTANT?
Every year India kills a decent size European nation on its roads. Road transport sector in India contributes 3.64% of GDP but road accidents, according to an UN report, account for the loss of 3% of the GDP. Last year more than 1,50,000 people died on our roads. This figure does not account for those who died in hospitals after some time or those who were incapacitated and lost their livelihoods. In India, one person dies every four minutes. Of every hundred people dying in the world, 30 are Indians. It is more alarming that as per the World Research Institute, by 2020 , the death toll in road accidents every year will reach up to 2.2 million and 50 per cent will be Indians. Maharashtra with 15,000 road deaths is second worst offender after Tamil Nadu. Every year around 1,50,000 people are killed and more than 4,50,000 people are critically injured in our country in road accidents.
Road accidents is a cause of loss of precious human lives. By adopting good practices in the area of engineering, education, medicine and enforcement and by spreading awareness on road safety aspects, we can minimize these casualties. Road safety is one of the most important subject today and even the Honourable Court stepped in to create the Road Safety Cell in various states, impose new regulations to bring this menace under control. However, the need of the hour is a long and sustained public campaign which will require high profile endorsement of the cause. Sports can be integrated with various social causes to create awareness among the masses. Cricket can contribute very handsomely to this movement aimed to make our roads safe and cities peaceful.
A SERIOUS ISSUE, SAYS GAVASKAR
Former India skipper and the legendary Sunil Gavaskar, who is the commissioner for the Road Safety World Series, during the launch of the event, congratulated Mr Gaikwad for taking this initiative and had said, “It’s a tremendous initiative. We planned this last year itself, when we had the no-horn initiative. But I think this is a better initiative as it’s something I have felt deeply concerned about because we lose so many lives. I want to thank Ravi for taking the initiative and making this happen.”
Gavaskar further added that when the “professionals” themselves don’t follow rules, then it is a matter of serious concern. “With the kind of cars that exist in India now, and the speeds they can go up to, when you give a licence to someone who cannot read signs, you are actually giving an AK-47 in his hands to mow down people. By professionals I mean truck and bus drivers. They are the ones behind most accidents. Unless you have a zero tolerance policy, these incidents will occur. I have seen trucks coming into the wrong lane on highways and expressways. This is a serious issue,” added the Little Master.
A VERY CONCERNING ISSUE: TENDULKAR
Brand Ambassador of the Road Safety World Series Sachin Tendulkar, talking during the launch of the event, said, “Road safety is a concerning issue. Almost two lakh lives are lost because of road accidents every year and every four minutes, one life is lost. We cannot afford to lose so many lives. And this is happening only because many people are not disciplined and do not follow traffic rules. It is not acceptable.
These are issues concerning for us as a nation. I have seen this not only in Mumbai, but also all over the country.”
Tendulkar further added: “People in India love cricket and we are blessed to be playing the sport. The love and affection showered by one and all towards cricket and cricketers is too fulfilling to express in words. I have been regularly talking about the importance of following traffic rules and driving safely, and the platform of Road Safety World Series feels like a full circle.”