As part of the National Road Safety Month, on February 18th 2021, CAG held a webinar on road safety in Tamil Nadu. The highlight of the webinar was the perspective shared by Mr. Pramod Kumar, IPS who heads the State Traffic Planning Wing of the Tamilnadu Police. With the recent strides made by Tamil Nadu in reducing road crash fatality, he was able to throw light on how these have been achieved and how the government is not waiting to rest on its laurels but looking to improve the state’s track record so the state can reach zero deaths.
Over the years, as CAG has interacted with citizens across Tamil Nadu on road safety issues, we have noticed that many of us are unclear on insurance matters. Do we need insurance to drive a vehicle? What is third party insurance? What is mandated by law?
The Corporation of Chennai (COC) aims to increase the use of cycling and walking by creating a safe and pleasant NMT network of footpaths, cycle tracks, green ways, and other facilities to serve all citizens in the COC area. The designs of Chennai streets will be consistent with best practices in pedestrian oriented, multi-modal street design. They will also incorporate appropriate environmental planning and water management techniques.
Proposed amendment to the Motor Vehicles Act which aim to strengthen road safety.
This report serves as the principal reference document on various aspects of accidents and suicide in the country.
CAG analysed compliance with helmet and seat belt rules in Chennai city and found that since 2017 (when CAG carried out its first compliance study) more two-wheeler riders and car drivers were complying with the law. However, pillion and passenger compliance is non-existent. A perception survey among two-wheeler and car users found that many of them believe they comply with the law when they actually don't and a majority of them agreed that stronger penalties and stricter enforcement of the law would help.
Tamil Nadu in the past has had the dubious distinction of being in the top two states in terms of road crashes and road crash fatalities. However, in the past few years, the state has made strides in reducing road crash fatalities in particular. In this webinar, the audience were able to understand how Tamil Nadu tackled this unfortunate public health issue and the government's future plan to further reduce road crashes. This was followed by a lively discussion with participants and speakers.
For 25 years, on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, we have come together to pay tribute to those impacted by road crashes. Is this enough? Is India doing enough to stop this preventable loss of lives?
Mani and Kumar believe that road crashes are things that happen to other people, causing them to have a laissez-faire attitude towards safety. What happens when reality catches up with them?