The state accounts for the top 20 accident-prone stretches on national highways, reveals government data
With as many as 717 fatalities in 11 'black spots' or accident-prone stretches from 2011-14, Tamil Nadu accounts for the maximum number of road accident fatalities on national highways, with Meghalaya in the second position and Uttar Pradesh third.
While Tamil Nadu is the country's most unsafe state in this category, Meghalaya reported 222 deaths in just three black spots and UP 146 fatalities across five black spots, reveals data from the Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways. However, the maximum fatalities seen in a single black spot remains the Nonthymmai area in the east Khasi Hills at NH 44 of Meghalaya, with 89 fatalities.
Data on black spots for 2015 is still being compiled, an official said. Inputs had to be invited twice over after some discrepancies in data sent by the states was spotted the first time, he explained.
According to the data, accessed by DNA, five of Tamil Nadu's black spots were in Kancheepuram and they led to 305 fatalities in the four years from 2011-14. Villupuram district, with 30 fatalities across four such accident-prone stretches, was number two.
The three states -- Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya and Uttar Pradesh – account for the top 20 black spots of the 789 identified in terms of fatalities. Tamil Nadu has 102 identified black spots, while Meghalaya and Uttar Pradesh have reported eight and 104 black spots, respectively.
Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, with 86 black spots, are actively working to make their highways safer by putting adequate signages and improving road design in the risk-prone stretches. Other states, in comparison, are lagging behind, an official said.
"Despite repeated reminders, only 50 per cent states have set up a dedicated road safety engineering cell," he said. Only 19 states have submitted their road safety action plan, a draft of which was sent to the states in 2013 by the government.
While some of these black spots come under the jurisdiction of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), some are also on state roads that fall under state governments. A fund of Rs 600 crore has been earmarked for road safety engineering works by the government; of this, Rs 12 crore has been sanctioned for the rectification of six black spots.
India has the highest number of road fatalities in the world with road accidents claiming more than 1.4 lakh lives every year, according to government reports. The ministry hopes to reduce the number of road- accident deaths by half in the next four year, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said at a road safety engineering workshop here recently.
Status update
Of 789 black spots, 100 have already been improved and 214 come under ongoing road-widening projects. Survey investigations are on or proposals are under consideration in the case of another 125, sources said.
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