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The "India Status Report on Road Safety 2024," compiled by the TRIP Centre at IIT Delhi, highlights the country’s slow progress in achieving international targets for reducing road accident fatalities. The report underscores the relationship between road construction, mobility, and the need for a tailored approach to reduce road accidents.
Key Findings of the Report
The report examines road safety in India using First Information Reports (FIRs) from six states, along with audits of state compliance with Supreme Court road safety directives. It reveals disparities in road traffic death rates across states, highlighting the vulnerability of motorcyclists and the high fatality rates in crashes involving trucks. Road traffic injuries continue to pose a significant public health challenge in India, with limited progress in reducing fatalities, despite developments in other sectors. Most Indian states are unlikely to meet the UN’s Decade of Action for Road Safety target of halving traffic fatalities by 2030.
In 2021, road traffic injuries ranked as the 13th leading cause of death in India and the 12th leading cause of health loss, measured by Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). In six states (Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh), these injuries were among the top 10 causes of health loss.
Why Crash Surveillance is Crucial
India's road safety data systems are inadequate for shaping effective policy. The country lacks a national database of individual crash data. Current road safety statistics are aggregated from police station records at various levels before being published, allowing for only basic analysis, which hinders the creation of effective interventions. Additionally, comparisons with other datasets, such as the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) study and the Sample Registration System (SRS), show inconsistencies, particularly concerning the mode of transport involved in accidents—a critical element in road safety management.
Due to the absence of a comprehensive crash surveillance system, the report relied on FIRs from six states and road safety governance audit reports.
State-Level Road Safety Performance
The report highlights significant variations in road safety across India, with death rates per capita differing by more than threefold between states. In 2021, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, and Chhattisgarh recorded the highest fatality rates, with 21.9, 19.2, and 17.6 deaths per 100,000 people, respectively, while West Bengal and Bihar had the lowest rates, at 5.9 per 100,000. Six states—Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu—accounted for almost half of all road fatalities in India.
The report also notes that pedestrians, cyclists, and motorized two-wheeler riders are the most frequent victims of road accidents, while trucks are responsible for the majority of collisions. Despite the proven effectiveness of helmets in reducing fatalities, helmet usage among motorized two-wheeler riders exceeds 50% in only seven states. Additionally, many states lag in basic road safety measures, such as proper signage, road markings, and traffic calming techniques. Rural areas suffer from low helmet usage and inadequate trauma care facilities, necessitating region-specific strategies to address these issues.