The person who is going out of the house hale and hearty, smiling returns home in a body bag because of negligence of multiple factors – bad road, overspeeding vehicle, lack of sign boards, jumping signal, lane cutting, drunken driving, wrong overtaking, poor visibility among others.
Nearly 1,21,000 fatal accidents were reported in 2020, and the victims were predominantly young individuals in productive age groups, as per the latest report released by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH). The report titled ‘Road accidents in India — 2020’ states that out of a total of 1,20,806 fatal accidents, 43,412 (around 35.9 per cent) accidents took place on National Highways and 30,171 (around 25 per cent) on State Highways. Meanwhile, 47,223 (approximately 39.1 per cent) on other roads.
Young adults between the age group of 18-45 years accounted for 69 per cent of the total victims during the calendar year 2020; it also claimed that people in the working-age group of 18-60 years suffered 87.4 per cent of total road accident fatalities.
It is unfortunate that the country is losing its working population to road accidents, most of which are avoidable.
Total number of road accidents reported in Goa in 2020 was 2,375 against 3,440 in 2019. Fatal accidents reported in 223 against 297 in 2019. While the reduction in accident cases and deaths in Goa in 2020 is good news, the fact remains that the accident and fatality figure is still high for a State with just 15 lakh population, registering an average of six mishaps every day is not acceptable. It just points out that the administration has to work harder for ensuring the safety of commuters.
If we just look at the road conditions, we will know the level of apathy from government officials. The potholes on Goa roads turn into craters. Most of our State’s roads don’t have functional streetlights, while in many places the sign boards are either missing or put up wrongly. There are no reflectors on roads which are abruptly dug up for any civic work. This makes these roads extremely hazardous for motorists, especially two-wheeler riders.
During monsoon, the situation is even worse as these potholes are filled with water and the two-wheelers become accident prone in these conditions. Abrupt signboards and flyovers also lead to road accidents. The state of Atal Setu is the prime example of how flawed is the administrative system.
Along with these is the major issue of two-wheeler riders and pillions not wearing helmets. A very essential safety gear for riders and pillions alike, helmets are discarded like a waste material. One fails to understand this resistance to wearing helmets. Many minor accidents turn into grave ones due to head injuries sustained because of non-wearing of helmets. Similar is the reluctance to fasten the seat belt while driving. It is a common practice of wearing a seat belt in the city to avoid police detection and remove it once the vehicle is out of city limits. These drivers are not only putting their lives in jeopardy but also putting other commuters in grave danger.
Each time a commuter is killed or crippled for life, families are shattered. Parents lose their young child, a child gets orphaned, a wife gets widowed. It is even more painful for families of accident victims who are physically alive but rendered into a vegetable because of severe brain injuries. Caregivers of these victims are dying every moment seeing their loved ones in such terrible condition.
It just takes an alert administration and a conscious society to avoid road accidents. The buck stops at the doorstep of every citizen – be it government officials, politicians or common citizens.
