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Indian Minister Declares Road Accidents as Top Cause of Death, Surpassing Wars
When asked about events that cause the most loss of life, many will say natural disasters, riots, and wars. But, no one would think of road accidents. But, in reality, road accidents are the biggest cause of death across the globe. The number is so high that road accidents are responsible for more deaths than wars and terrorist attacks. This was stated by none other than India's Minister of Road Transport & Highways, Nitin Gadkari. Let's take a look at further details on this.
We are highly dependent on automobiles for many things, to the point that our lives can't function without them. There's nothing wrong in using vehicles. It's one of humanity's inventions. But, most of us don't know how to use vehicles correctly.
Statistics show that most road accidents occur on expressways, which primarily lead to high-speed travel. Hence, the number of fatalities is high in these areas. Such areas where road accidents are high are called black spots. Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways, has stated that these black spots are increasing throughout the country.
While participating in the 6th annual FICCI Road Safety Awards and Conference, Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister, stated that the reason for the increasing number of black spots is the poor Detailed Project Report for road projects. Speaking further, Mr. Gadkari expressed an alarming statement that "more people die in road accidents than in wars and terrorist attacks".
Speaking further, he mentioned that approximately 5 lakh road accidents occur in India every year, causing the death of 1.5 lakhs people and injuring 3 lakhs every year. "This is causing a 3% drop in the country's GDP. Drivers are blamed for all accidents. But, the fault lies with the road engineers," stated Mr. Gadkari, urging that safety audits be conducted across all the country's highways.
Nitin Gadkari strongly believes that to reduce the number of road accidents, people need to stick to driving on the same lane on the road. He also mentioned that the Road Transport & Highways Ministry is preparing ambulances and drivers to quickly rescue people who encounter road accidents.
So, does this mean that ambulances and drivers are currently not quick to respond? The answer is yes. Sometimes it takes up to 3 hours to rescue accident victims. Speaking about vehicle safety standards, the Union Minister stated that starting in 2025, only buses that meet international safety standards will be allowed for sale.
Speaking further on this measure to improve public transport safety, Gadkari stated that "following the discovery that current buses are often made using steel scrap, wood planks, and aluminum sheets, the decision has been made to follow international safety standards."
Human life is priceless. But, India is one of the countries that has a high number of road accidents that cause fatalities. The main reasons for this include high-speed travel, drunk driving, etc. But, is it shocking to hear Union Minister Nitin Gadkari say that poor road project planning is the cause? We'll leave that for you to answer.
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