Govt launches road safety week, allots Rs 11,000 cr to fix black spots

The Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday launched ‘Road Safety Week’ in the presence of the road transport & highways minister, Nitin Gadkari.

Speaking on the occasion, Singh called upon all stakeholders to play effective role in ensuring safety on roads. Expressing concern over about five lakh road accidents in the country every year in which about 1.4 lakh people lose their lives, Singh said that there is a need for proper training of drivers before they are issued driving licenses.

In his address Nitin Gadkari announced a number of measures to address the problem. He said that a website is being launched to help in identifying black spots where accidents take place frequently. Gadkari also announced that Rs 11,000 Crore are being earmarked in the next five years to fix black spots across the country.

Expressing concern over the way driving licenses are issued, Gadkari said that training schools are being opened and computers will be used for conducting driving tests. He also emphasized use of seat belts and helmets and appealed the people not to use mobile phones while driving. He added that airbags will be made compulsory in every car.

Gadkari also announced that a road safety authority will be constituted and road transport and safety bill will be placed shortly before Parliament. He asked people to take a resolve on road safety and bring down road accidents by 50 per cent in next five years.

The road safety week is organized every year to create awareness among general public to improve the safety on road and to give an opportunity to all stakeholders to contribute to the cause of road safety.