Tamil Nadu continues to be accident capital of country

Chennai: Tamil Nadu continues to top the charts in the number of road accidents in the entire country with 71,431 accidents in 2016 as against 69,059 in 2015, according to a recent report by the Union ministry of road transport and highways (MORTH). Moreover, among the cities in the country, capital city Chennai reported the most number of road accidents (7,486) during 2016.

The state recorded 17,218 fatalities in 2016 just behind Uttar Pradesh where 19,320 lost their lives. The number of accidental deaths rose in Tamil Nadu from 15,642 in 2015, accounting for 11.4 per cent of the total accidents. But, compared to its total share of the accidents, the fatalities are comparatively low.

 Tamil Nadu also topped the list in the maximum number of people injured (82,163). Two wheelers, jeeps and buses constitute the majority of vehicles involved in road accidents.

 In Tamil Nadu, Chennai reported the most number of fatal accidents (1,155), injuries (6,050) and severity of the accident, followed by Coimbatore that reported 276 fatal injuries.

 “Tamil Nadu has a high number of two wheelers, moreover the vehicle trend is changing as there are more powerful vehicles being launched. Most of them do not adhere to the helmet and seat belt rule. This year, the norms in the Motor Vehicle Act would be enforced more stringently to bring down the number of fatalities,” said an official.

However, a traffic expert says the reason for the alarming rate of accidents is faulty designs of roads and flyovers and bleak enforcement of the law. “Also, most of the vehicles run more than the permissible limit and the officials do not ensure a regular check,” he said.

 According to the report, the road accidents in 2016 in the country claimed 1,50,785 lives, which would translate to an average of 17 deaths every hour. Though the accidents in the country declined from last year, Tamil Nadu has a distinction it cannot be proud of.

Accidents in Chennai - 2016
Fatal Accidents            1,155
Injury accidents            6,050
Total accidents            7,486
Number of persons killed        1,183
Number of persons injured    7,349

Helmet sales come down from 1,000 to 70
It has been two years since the Madras high court ordered the Centre and state governments to publicise wearing of helmets as a mandatory requirement and like many other rules, this too was followed meticulously for a few months and then gone to the winds.

Following HC's orders in 2015, helmet shops in Chennai had stocked thousands of helmets. While the first four months, helmets were sold like hot cakes at the rate of at least 1000 per day; the number had come down to 70 per day within four months.

 "Even the first four months, the motorists knew the rule will wear off soon and bought least priced helmets that serve no purpose of safety. Like the government implemented GST stringently and everybody started accepting it as a part of their life, even this rule must be enforced in the same way," said Jaffar Ali, joint partner, Rainbow, one of the largest distributors of helmets in Chennai.