Uttar Pradesh will soon have the country’s first highway patrol force, with the state government having worked out the configuration and deployment of the proposed force.
Named the UP Highway Police (UPHP), the 24x7 force comprising over 750 personnel who will be trained at the Royal New Zealand Police College will be deployed on two pilot corridors — NH2 (from Mathura-Ballia) and NH25 (Kanpur-Lucknow).
The UPHP will be required to respond to crimes and accidents — by controlling the accident site and administering first aid to victims — and also collect and report accurate data.
The state police will still retain jurisdiction over the subsequent investigation of any accident or criminal offence.
“We are ready with the structure and functions of the proposed force. Its phased deployment will begin after the cabinet’s nod,” sources said.
The establishment of the UPHP aims at building a proactive and visible force to act as a deterrent to crimes and help reduce road accident deaths along the identified corridors.
The responsibility of the proposed force will be taken by the addition director general of police (traffic), supported by a project implementation unit.
It will work with the state police and transport department.
{{/usCountry}}It will work with the state police and transport department.
{{/usCountry}}The New Zealand government is assisting UP to establish this force with the World Bank giving a Rs 300 crore loan for the project.
“New Zealand has been able to drastically reduce the number of road accidents with the help of the vigilant highway police,” the sources pointed out.
As per a report recently prepared by the traffic directorate, national highways, state highways and expressways together accounted for 10,218 road accidents killing 11,851 people in UP in 2014.
The total number of road accidents and resultant deaths in the state during the same year was 31,034 and 16,287, respectively.