Despite being one of the fastest growing automobile markets in the world, safety on Indian roads is far from global standards. As per data available, Indian roads account for the highest fatalities in the world. In the year 2015, more than 1.46 lakh people lost their lives in road accidents and 500,279 people were injured.
R. S. Kalsi, director- sales and marketing, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd said, “In certain countries, road safety becomes a major election agenda. We have a long way to go in this regard. In spite of having only 1 per cent of the total vehicles running in the world, our roads accounts for 10 per cent of global fatalities.”
He also called for stronger scrutiny when it comes to granting driving license. Approval rate for granting license by training schools in India is 90 per cent against 30 per cent in foreign nations.
“Stronger punishment for violators and equipping technology in traffic management will help to lower fatalities,” said Kalsi, in an event to promote traffic awareness on Monday (January 09). Maruti Suzuki and Radio Mirchi in association with the Traffic Police Department of New Delhi have come together for the second edition of ‘Maruti Traffic Heroes of India’ for Mirchi Traffic School, to address the problem.
Kalsi added that in their analysis they found that 78 per cent of the time, accidents happen due to drivers fault and with proper training they can bring the number down. “Developing soft skills and etiquettes among drivers is the need of the hours,” said Kasli.
Garima Bhatnagar, joint commissioner of Police- Traffic said that solving traffic problem is their priority and they aim to bring zero fatalities on roads.
She said, “Road constitute almost 20 per cent of Delhi’s total surface area. We should make optimal use of the road space. However, the urge for improving the traffic condition should come from civilians first and not from traffic constables.”
The national capital has earned a negative image in traffic management. Age-old mechanism to control traffic mess has given rise to a new problem called- encroachment. About two-third of roads in many localities are often encroached by shopkeepers and parkers, leaving almost no place for efficient movement.
BW Reporters
The author is Senior Correspondent with BW Businessworld
