Ensure 50% fall in road accident deaths in state: Govt

Chief secretary Mishra aims to reduce road accident deaths in UP by 50% this year. Govt. orders district magistrates to take measures for safer roads.

Chief secretary Durga Shankar Mishra has given district-wise instructions to authorities concerned in an attempt to bring down road accident deaths in the state by 50% this year.

According to the government, 23,652 people died and 31,098 were injured in 44534 reported cases of road accidents in UP in 2023. This (For representation)

In a government order issued on February 19, Mishra directed district magistrates (DMs) to take all the possible measures such as better road engineering, rapid response to mishaps, better trauma care in the golden hour, effective enforcement and extensive public awareness to ensure that the goal for 2024 was achieved.

“Reducing the number of road accidents in the state is among the government’s top priorities. A committee chaired by the chief minister continuously monitors the status of road safety in the state. The Supreme Court’s Committee on Road Safety also regularly keeps a watch on the situation,” Mishra said in the GO.

“Districts need to make some additional efforts in light of the SOPs (standard operating procedures) issued by the government in July 2023 to halve the number of deaths in road accidents in 2024 against 2023.”

23,652 deaths in 44K accidents

As per the GO, 23,652 people died and 31,098 were injured in 44534 reported cases of road accidents in UP in 2023. This year, the government wants to bring down fatalities to 11,826 while setting similar targets for districts individually.

According to government data, the highest number of deaths after Kanpur Nagar were reported in Bulandshahr (607) and Prayagraj (582). In terms of road accidents, Kanpur Nagar (1,442), Prayagraj (1,297) followed by Lucknow were the top three. The highest number of injuries were reported in after Bareilly (1,091), Mathura (1,015) and Kanpur Nagar (985).

Meanwhile, 56 districts in the state recorded an increase in the number of road accidents, and 47 in the number of fatalities, in 2023 against 2022. The top three districts registering an increase in the number of deaths were Baghpat (33.1%), Pratapgarh (30%), and Shahjhanpur (29.5%).

Target ‘unrealistic’

A senior transport official, however, said the goals fixed by the government were unrealistic given the situation in the state. “The government set similar targets for 2023 but what happened was that the number of road accidents, the number of people injured, and the number of deaths rose by 6.7%, 4.7% and 9%, respectively,” he pointed out.

“It may take many years and a lot of efforts by all the stakeholders to curtail the number of fatalities in the state by 50%,” he said.