Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) has taken a host of initiatives to bring down incidences of road fatalities in India, including the creation of a national road safety board and rolling out of an integrated road accident database, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) said quoting a senior ministry official.
MORTH Deputy Secretary Gaurav H Gupta said: “Creation of national road safety board, rolling out of integrated road accident data base, and state support forum on road safety, are a few key initiatives taken by the Ministry to bring down road fatalities.”
Child Safety
Recently, the Road Transport Ministry introduced new draft rules to ensure the safety of children -- aged between nine months to four years -- travelling by motorcycles. Not only will motorcycles carrying children below four years of age not be allowed to exceed speed of 40 kmph, they will also have to ensure the child is wearing a crash helmet of the right size. The rider must also make sure that a safety harness is used to attach the pillion with the driver to prevent kids from falling off the bike.
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Awards for Good Samaritans
Earlier in October, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways also came up with a scheme to encourage Good Samaritans to help accident victims.
A Good Samaritan who has saved the life of a victim of a fatal accident involving a motor vehicle by administering immediate assistance and rushing to the Hospital/Trauma Care Centre within the Golden Hour of the accident to provide medical treatment, will be awarded Rs 5,000 per incident. Each person will be eligible for the award a maximum of five times per year.
National Road Safety Board
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has also notified the constitution of the National Road Safety Board, which will be responsible for promoting road safety, setting specific standards for road safety, traffic management, road construction for hilly areas, and innovation and adoption of new technology, and for regulating traffic and motor vehicles.
It will also be tasked with issuing guidelines for capacity building and the development of skills for traffic police, hospital authorities, and highway authorities.
Accident Data Base
Apart from this, a pilot project has been launched by the Union Ministry of Road Transport in six states and UTs – including Goa, Andhra Pradesh, and Meghalaya -- to prepare a common database for road accidents using the Integrated Road Accident Database (iRAD) project.
Under the project, the police, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), the Road Transport Authority (RTA), the Department of Health, Roads & Buildings, and the insurance sector will come together to document the details of each and every accident to understand their nature and the average reaction time to save the victims.
