3,000 road deaths in 5 dists in 2 years set alarm bells ringing
POLICE DATA STF formed to look into problem area and prepare an action plan for curbing accidents in Rajasthan
JAIPUR: In two years, 3,108 people have been killed in road accidents in five districts of Rajasthan ringing alarm bells for the officials of Rajasthan police.
The districts where the accidents took place are Nagaur, Tonk, Sikar, Dholpur and Churu.
In 2019, 461 people died in road accidents in Nagaur, followed by 459 in Sikar, 255 in Tonk, 254 in Churu and and 233 in Dholpur, according to the police department data.
In 2018, 417 people lost their lives in Sikar, followed by 415 in Nagaur, 22 in Tonk, 218 in Churu and 174 in Dholpur.
While Nagaur witnessed a rise of 36% in road accident casualties, Dholpur saw an increase of 33.9%, Tonk saw a rise of 33%, Sikar saw a rise of 32% and Churu saw a rise of 16.5%.
In last three weeks, 20 people have died in road accidents in Churu district only. Seven people were killed in a road accident when a car rammed into a truck on the National Highway 58 near
Churu district late on Sunday night. The impact of the collision was so severe that front part of the car was completely damaged.
Additional director general of police (ADGP), traffic, PK Singh cited lack of medians, signboards and rash driving behind the rise in road accidents. “A brief analysis of the incidents revealed that the quality of roads in Churu, Nagaur, Sikar and other districts have improved, but the problem is lack of medians and signboards on the state and national highways passing through them. As the quality of roads has improved, people have started driving fast and when they overtake, there are chances of collision with another vehicle coming from opposite directions,” he said. He said the department has written to the concerned authorities to look into the problem areas. “We are working on a solution and also trying to find out loopholes on stretches from where maximum number of accidents has been reported,” he added.
After the death of more than 50 people in road accidents in these five districts on December 26, the police headquarters had formed a special task force (STF) to look into the problems and prepare an action plan towards curbing accidents and mishaps on roads in Rajasthan. The STF comprises senior officers and staff of police and traffic wings.
According to the data of ministry of road and transport highway (MORTH), Rajasthan is at the ninth spot in country in terms of road accidents. The MORTH report said there were 22,112 road accidents in Rajasthan in 2017; while in 2018, 21,743 road accidents were reported. There were 10,444 deaths due to accidents in 2017, which dropped to 10,320 in 2018.