New Delhi, Mar 19 (UNI) Emphasising prevention as the key to reducing fatalities, Secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, V Umashankar on Thursday urged road safety volunteers to focus on identifying causes of accidents and stopping them before they occur.
Addressing the concluding session of a three-day Sadak Suraksha Mitra (SSM) training-cum-workshop, he said grassroots interventions are crucial in improving road safety and saving lives.
The workshop, organised by the Centre of Excellence for Road Safety (CoERS) at IIT Madras under MoRTH, was held from March 16-18 in Faridabad with participation of 53 volunteers from five states and 13 districts.
Highlighting key concerns, he said nearly 45 per cent of road accident deaths involve two-wheelers, largely due to non-use of helmets, while about 20 per cent fatalities involve pedestrians.
He also informed that 100 high-accident districts have been identified for targeted interventions, urging volunteers to work closely with local authorities to implement solutions.
