UP government makes committee to probe fatal road accidents

The committee will prepare an action plan within three months, and the government will then take necessary steps to address the issues identified in the report

To investigate the causes of fatal road accidents, the Uttar Pradesh government has taken an initiative to probe the accidents in the state in which three or more people are killed.

This initiative aims to determine the underlying causes of fatal road accidents. (HT Photo)

According to a recent notification, a district-level committee consisting of officials from traffic police, the transport department, road safety engineers, and experts will conduct detailed accident investigations under the Uttar Pradesh Road Crash Investigation Scheme, 2023. This initiative aims to determine the underlying causes of fatal road accidents.

Principal Secretary L. Venkateshwar Lu of Uttar Pradesh issued a notification in this regard on October 12, 2023. The district-level committee will include an assistant regional transport officer (ARTO) as a nodal officer responsible for implementing the scheme in the district, along with domain experts and police officers.

According to Noida police records, in 2022, 437 fatalities and 856 injuries resulted from 1,122 road accidents in the city. In 2023, from January to June, 143 fatalities and 309 injuries occurred in 394 road accidents.

Udit Narayan Pandey, the assistant regional transport officer (ARTO-enforcement) of Gautam Budh Nagar, said, “The initiative focuses on enhancing road safety and corrective actions following accidents. Investigation under the scheme is mandated when a road crash results in three or more fatalities.”

“Previously, road accident cases were primarily handled by the police through FIR registration, but investigations often lacked attention to technical issues like road conditions, traffic violations, and vehicle technicalities. The new committee will include members from ARTO, traffic police, and the Public Works Department (PWD),” the officer added.

The PWD will concentrate on aspects such as road design, signboards, potholes, traffic lights, and other factors contributing to accidents. Traffic police and ARTO will investigate traffic violations committed by vehicles involved in accidents. The team will review the FIR, medico-legal certificates, post-mortem reports in case of fatalities, and conduct interviews with injured victims. The police will conduct their investigations and collaborate with committee members to compile a comprehensive report.

According to the notification, the report will include detailed information such as the date, time, location, the nearest police station, first responders, ambulance arrival time, road specifics, GPS coordinates, accident severity, and more. It will also detail how the accident occurred, the number of vehicles involved, vehicle make and model, vehicle conditions, pedestrian involvement, and the total count of injuries and fatalities.

The committee will prepare an action plan within three months, and the government will then take necessary steps to address the issues identified in the report.