161 people, mostly two-wheeler riders, lost their lives
Amresh Parab
Panaji: These figures will give some relief to road users: the police said that 161 people were killed in road accidents in the state in the last seven months, a decrease in fatalities by over 12 per cent as compared to the corresponding period of last year.
The police said that last year (from January to July), 184 people died in road accidents, while the number of road fatalities has come down to 161 during the corresponding period of this year.
Mostly two-wheeler riders died in road accidents: in the last seven months, 97 two-wheeler riders lost their lives, and 17 pillion riders were killed. Others who lost their lives in road accidents this year are 34 pedestrians, six drivers, four passengers and three others.
Road accidents have also decreased by over 12 per cent this year as compared to the first seven months of 2024: 1,555 road accidents took place during the same period of last year, while this year, so far, has seen 1,363 road mishaps.
It is pertinent to know that there has been a decline in traffic violation cases by over 48 per cent. During the first seven months of last year the police booked 2,73942 traffic violations, while this year the police have so far booked 1,39724 cases.
The decline has been attributed to the state government’s decision in April this year to authorise only police inspectors and police sub-inspectors to issue challans for traffic violations.
Referring to causes of road accidents, police officials said that rash and negligent driving/riding is one of the main reasons. The poor road infrastructure has also been attributed as another reason for road accidents, sources said.
The police have identified 43 ‘accident spots’, including 13 mishap-prone zones and 30 black spots in the state.
Two of the accident-prone spots are in the city: from the KTC bus stand to the old session court building, and from Bal Ganesh temple at Campal to the directorate of health services.
A senior police officer said authorities conducted inspections across the state and identified 30 black spots and 13 accident-prone zones for the years 2022, 2023 and 2024. Details have been forwarded to the public works department (PWD) suggesting rectifications.
Referring to the corrective measures undertaken for public safety, the police said that awareness programmes on road accidents and citizen safety are held by the staff of police stations and traffic cells by visiting schools and colleges.
Awareness programmes are also conducted at other public places. Special drives are held, and personnel are deployed at strategic points and at accident-prone areas for monitoring, checking and regulating smooth flow on vehicular traffic.
