1.53 lakh people died in 4.12 lakh road accidents in 2021: Ministry of Road Transport and Highways Report
According to a report released by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on 28 December 2022 a total of 4,12,432 road accidents occurred in the 2021 calendar year which claimed 1,53,972 lives while 3,84,448 people were injured.
The report titled 'Road accidents in India — 2021', said major indicators related to accidents have performed better in 2021 when compared to 2019.
According to the report, "Road accidents decreased by 8.1 percent and injuries decreased by 14.8 percent in 2021 compared to 2019. Fatalities, however, on account of road accidents increased by 1.9 percent in 2021 corresponding to the same period in 2019,”
Not wearing seat belt and helmet a reason for road fatalities
- According to the report a total of 16,397 persons were killed in road accidents in 2021 due to not wearing seat belt, of which 8,438 were drivers and remaining 7,959 were passengers.
- A total of 46,593 persons were killed in road accidents due to not wearing a helmet, of which 32,877 were drivers and 13,716 were passengers.
- According to the report, not wearing a helmet caused injuries to 93,763 persons and not wearing seat belts caused injuries to 39,231 persons during 2021.
- Not using safety devices such as helmet and seat belt does not cause accidents but are critical for averting fatal and grievous injuries in the event of road accidents.
- Although not wearing a seat belt by passengers sitting in the rear seats attracts a fine of Rs 1,000 under Rule 138 (3) of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules (CMVR), most people are either unaware of this mandatory rule or just ignore it.
The country saw an unprecedented decrease in accidents, fatalities, and injuries. This was due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resultant stringent nationwide lockdown particularly during March-April, 2020 followed by gradual unlocking and phasing out of the containment measures, it said.
The report is based on the data/information received from police departments of states/Union Territories collected on a calendar year basis in standardized formats as provided by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) under the Asia Pacific Road Accident Data (APRAD) base project.
Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways: Nitin Gadkari
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