Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Thursday, Aug 03, 2006
Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Thursday, Aug 03, 2006 |
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Roadways States - Tamil Nadu Spotlight on measures to prevent road accidents Our Bureau
The decision to slow down Government-run inter-city buses in Tamil Nadu in order to get more mileage had another favourable fallout — a marked reduction in accidents.
Chennai , Aug 2 India accounts for 1 per cent of the world's vehicular population but makes up for 6 per cent of global road accidents. Each year, some 12 lakh people die in India from road accidents. The situation can be rectified substantially by simple measures such as insisting on strapping a seat belt, wearing helmets, contour-marking vehicles with reflective stickers and not overloading trucks. This message was an important take-home for the participants of a seminar on road safety organised here jointly by the Society for Automotive Fitness and Environment (SAFE), Automotive Research Association of India and Automotive Components Manufacturers Association . Mr S. Mulliappan, Director, Institute of Road Transport, Chennai, said the decision to slow down Government-run inter-city buses in Tamil Nadu in order to get more mileage had another favourable fallout — a marked reduction in accidents. From 11,414 accidents in 1996-97, the number fell to 7,216 in 2005-06, he said. The main reason was the decision to slow down to a mileage-wise optimum cruising speed of 50 kmph, he added. Mr Pawan Kumar Singh, National Key Accounts Manager, 3M India Ltd, a company which also manufactures reflective stickers, noted that the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation decided one-and-a-half-years ago to contour mark 400 of its buses with reflective stickers.
Reflective stickers
Ever since, there has not been a single accident involving any of the buses, he said. Today, under a new provision of the Motor Vehicles Act, all new vehicles are to be sold only with reflective stickers. The law exists, but its implementation has been tardy, said Mr B. Bhanot, Chairman, Central Motor Vehicle Rules-Technical Standing Committee. Mr Bhanot, who chaired the session on `Road Safety Through Technology,' said that wearing seat belts was the first and most important step to prevent fatality in car accidents. He also called for more `Inspection and Certification' agencies in each State, on the lines of the one in Delhi. These I&C agencies should be automated so that without any human intervention it can ensure if the vehicle is fit to ply on the roads. Calling for an "attitude change" in the vehicle driver, Dr K.R. Shyamsundar, Additional Director-General of Police, Tamil Nadu, said that manufacturers should find technology solutions to ensure safety. For example, he said, the ignition should remain locked as long as the seat belt is not fastened. Mr K.N. Krishnamurthy, President, SAFE, said that SAFE had been working with various State governments towards reducing road accidents. Mr Krishnamurthy, who is also a senior executive of Ashok Leyland, said that in future, whenever the company produced fully built vehicles (as opposed to producing only the chassis) it would stick reflective tapes on them.
More Stories on : Roadways | Accidents | Tamil Nadu
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