India leads world in road deaths Accidents Kill 13 Indians Per Hour In Country Dipak Kumar Dash | TNN

New Delhi: In a dubious distinction for the country, the World Health Organizati on has revealed in its first ever Global Status Report on Road Safety that more people die in road accidents in India than anywhere else in the world, including the more populous China. Calling road fatalities an epidemic that will become the world s fifth biggest k iller by 2030, the report said while the rich nations had been able to lower the ir death rates, these were sharply on the rise in the third world. It said 90% o f deaths on world s roads occur in low and middle-income countries (21.5 and 19.5 per lakh of population, respectively) though they have just 48% of all registere d vehicles. The statistics for India are chilling. At least 13 people die every hour to road accidents in the country, the latest report of the National Crime Records B ureau (NCRB) reveals. In 2007, 1.14 lakh people in India lost their lives in roa d mishaps that s significantly higher than the 2006 road death figures in China, 8 9,455. Road deaths in India registered a sharp 6.1% rise between 2006 and 2007. How ever, road safety experts say that the real numbers could be higher since many o f these accident cases are not even reported. There is no estimate of how many in jured in road accidents die a few hours or days after the accident, points out Ro hit Baluja, member of the UN Road Safety Collaboration and Commission of Global Road Safety representing Asia. The report, based on 2006 and 2007 statistics collected from 178 participati ng countries, said globally over 1.2 people die in road accidents every year and 20-25 million people suffer non-fatal injuries. Baluja said both central and state governments, while pushing for constructi on of more highways and roads, were doing precious little to make them safe. We d on t have scientific traffic engineering which forms the basis of road safety impr ovement practiced in US and UK since 1930s. This still remains a matter of consu ltancy in India as we are yet to have our own traffic engineering wings, Baluja a dds. In fact, the report shows while only 3,298 people died in road accidents in UK in 2006, in case of US it was 42,642. Speed is the main reason behind road mi shaps New Delhi: India has once again taken the top spot but on the wrong list. The Worl d Health Organisation s report says that India has the maximum number of accidenta l deaths in the World. The report pointed to speeding, drinking-driving and low use of helmets, sea t belts and child restraints in vehicles as the main contributing factors to dea ths across the globe. In 2004, road accidents was the top ninth cause of death. Speed is the main reason behind accidents. An increase in average speed is di rectly related to both the likelihood of a crash occurring and to the severity o f crash consequences. A 5% increase in average speed leads to an approximately 1 0% increase in crashes that cause injuries and a 20% increase in fatal crashes.

Zones of 30 kmph can reduce crash risk and injury severity and are recommended i n areas where vulnerable road users are particularly at risk, the report said. Significantly, while it also highlighted that only 29% countries had managed to reduce traffic speed in urban areas and 10% have been effective in managing it, the report stated that traffic calming measures were lacking in areas with n o traffic segregation. This is one of the major worries in our case. The roles and responsibilities of agencies managing traffic is not defined, Baluja points out. Meanwhile, a brief analysis of the NCRB report points to Andhra Pradesh havi ng the highest share of deaths due to road accidents (12%) followed by Maharasht ra and Uttar Pradesh (11% each). Interestingly, contrary to the popular view of trucks being a major killer o n roads, the report shows these to be the biggest victims of mishaps 23,991 occu pants of trucks and lorries lost their lives in 2007. This was followed by occupants of two-wheelers. To put a check on nt on roads, WHO suggests setting speed limits up to 50 kmph that nction of individual roads, a drink-driving law and making helmet use on motorised two and threewheelers, seat belts in both front and rear ll vehicles and enforcement of child restraint laws. the accide reflect the fu mandatory seats of a