The ministry of road transport and highways had been able to utilise till November-end only 10 per cent of the fund allocated for providing road safety during the current financial year.
Of the Rs 79 crore it got for the current financial year, it utilised only Rs 7.6 crore till November. Also during the past two financial years, the ministry returned part of its allocation, utilising Rs 54.9 crore of Rs 73 crore given in 2008-09 and Rs 42.9 crore of the Rs 52 crore allotted in 2007-08.
Primarily, the safety of road users is the responsibility of the state governments, butthe road transport ministry also has schemes to make national highways safer. The ministry is supposed to run awareness campaigns for road safety, refresher training to heavy motor vehicle drivers, provides ambulances and cranes on the highways for post accident care and the like. It also does education and awareness campaigns.
India’s rank in road safety surveys has been poor. In a recent safety survey by the World Health Organization (WHO), the country was on the top of the list of countries with annual reported number of traffic deaths. India reports 315 deaths and 5,000 injuries every day. Estimates show the country loses nearly Rs 70,000 crore due to road mishaps every year.
Recently, Union Roads and Transport Minister Kamal Nath had announced a target to bring down the toll on roads by half in three years.
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