New Delhi, March 2, 2015: Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has taken a number of steps to prevent road accidents as per details mentioned under:
(i) The Government has approved a National Road Safety Policy. This Policy outlines various policy measures such as promoting awareness, establishing road safety information data base, encouraging safer road infrastructure including application of intelligent transport, enforcement of safety laws etc.
(ii) The Ministry has requested all States/UTs for setting up of State Road Safety Council and District Road Safety Committees, if not already done, and to hold their meetings regularly so that the right message to curb the menace of road accidents reaches all concerned and due priority is given to road safety.
(iii) It is ensured that road safety remains the integral part of road design at planning stage.
(iv) Various steps are being taken to enhance road safety such as road furniture, road markings/road signs, introduction of Highway Traffic Management System using Intelligent Transport System, enhancement of discipline among contractors during construction, road safety audit on selected stretches, have been undertaken by National Highways Authority of India.
(v) Refresher training to Heavy Motor Vehicle drivers in the unorganized sector being implemented by the Ministry since 1997-98 under plan activities.
(vi) Setting up of Driving Training School in the States by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
(vii) Publicity campaign on road safety awareness both through the audio-visual and print media by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.
(viii) Tightening of safety standards of vehicles like Seat Belts, Power-steering, rear view Mirror etc.
(ix) Providing cranes and ambulances to various State Governments/NGOs under National Highway Accident Relief Service Scheme. National Highways Authority of India also provides ambulances at a distance of 50 Km. on each of its completed stretches of National Highways under its Operation & Maintenance contracts.
(x) Widening and improvements of National Highways from 2 lanes to 4 lanes and 4 lanes to 6 lanes etc.
A pilot project has been launched by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways for three stretches viz. Gurgaon - Jaipur section of NH-8, Vadodara - Mumbai section of NH – 8 and Ranchi –Mahulia section of NH-33 under which free cashless treatment upto a limit of Rs. 30,000 will be provided to the road accident victims for the first 48 hours. Under this project, GPS enabled ambulances, connected with a central control room through a toll-free number 1033 are stationed at a distance of 20 km to transport the accident victim to the nearest hospital for treatment within the ‘Golden Hour’.
This information was given by Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways, Pon Radhakrishnan in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.