E-Paper
34 deaths in 77 accidents: December deadliest month for Mohali commuters
Unmotorable roads, poor road-sense among residents meant the district saw one death a day in 2017 with 271 fatalities.
Before 2017 bids adieu, it is leaving a deadly trail for commuters in Mohali. Data with police till December 27 shows that 34 people have been killed in road accidents in the district in the month, the most in the year.
The number of accident cases registered has also been the highest in the year at 77. Some of these cases went untraced, being in the nature of hit-and-run, and 56 were actually traced.
Officially, the police do not keep a separate record of cases classified as hit-and-run. Overall, the district has seen 271 deaths in the year in 509 accident cases registered.
The airport road continues to be the pain point of the district, with Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) getting a stretch of the road constructed again. GMADA had missed the deadline, set by the Punjab chief minister’s special committee for making the stretch — Airport Chowk to the Banur-Landran road T-point — motorable by December 15.
Roads within the city are full of potholes, making commuters, especially two-wheelers, lose balance. Residents also lament that diversion boards and signboards are missing.
Prolonged delay in the construction of the Balongi- Kharar and the Zirakpur- Banur flyovers in Mohali makes negotiating these stretches, tortuous and dangerous, especially at night.
With only 130 traffic policemen for a population in lakhs, the force finds it exceedingly difficult to enforce traffic rules. What is even more galling is that the district authorities are not clear on how many people are actually needed. Equipment and trained manpower is thus a problem that indirectly adds to accidents, and deaths.
Police claim that the majority of the traffic fatalities involve car occupants not wearing belts and almost a third involve drivers impaired by drugs or alcohol and using phone while driving.
“Poor road conditions in the region warrant for a careful driver. However, the use of mobile phones while driving has led to increase in the number of fatalities,” said a police official requesting anonymity.
The number of accidents in the city is also seeing a rise. In the past week alone, three people have been killed here.
Previous highest deaths in a month were 31
Previously, the district saw the number of accident cases registered touch 50 only in February with 31 people losing their lives. Another trend that the data reveals is that on average, the fatality rate on the district’s roads is 50% with every second accident leaving behind at least one death in its wake.
Mohali deputy commissioner Gurpreet Kaur Sapra said, “It is high time that the GMADA, the MC and the police take note of the rise in number of accidents. People should come forward and help.”
Mohali deputy mayor Manjit Singh, said, “There have been many deaths due to sub-standard material used for construction of roads under the supervision of GMADA. Mohali district is paying the price for politicisation of development projects. Contractors run away or perform their duty in a lethargic manner.”
