MPLAD fund can be used for reducing accident black spots: IRF

The International Road Federation (IRF), a Geneva-based road safety body, has urged MPs and MLAs to use their funds for reducing accident black spots in their constituencies.
"The MPs/MLAs, in a show of responsibility towards their area, as a part of the development work, need to encourage and focus on road safety.... As per the current provisions, the development funds under MPLAD can be used for construction of footpaths, pedestrian ways," IRF said in a statement.
It said Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs) could work in this regard in association with local bodies for removal of accident-prone spots.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has identified 726 black spots on National Highways and has announced a Rs 11,000 crore fund to rectify these accident prone areas.
"India accounts for more than 10 per cent of the total fatal road accidents world wide. The data on road accidents shows that during 2014 about 1.41 lakh people lost their lives in 4.5 lakh road accidents and about 4.8 lakh got injured," IRF Chairman KK Kapila said.
The fatality rate had recorded a 3 per cent jump in comparison to 2013.
India being a signatory to the UN General Assembly, which recognised the clear impact of road accidents on global health, adopted 2011-2020 as the UN Decade of Action for road fatalities and accordingly has set a target to reduce them by 50 per cent by 2020, Kapila said.