Road accidents in Tamil Nadu

Last updated

Road collisions in Tamil Nadu, a state in South India, are among the highest in India. In 2013, the state recorded 15,563 fatalities in the 14,504 recorded collisions, the highest for any state in India. The state also topped the list of most collisions in a state for all previous 18 years from 2002 to 2020. According to the report of two experts published in the International Journal of Research in Management and Technology, driving under the influence of alcohol accounts for 82 per cent of collision fatalities in India. A few political leaders have vehemently opposed the state-run TASMAC shops that sell alcohol and have called for a total prohibition of alcohol in the state, but opposing governments have maintained that prohibition would lead to illegal liquor, which in the past has claimed hundred of lives. The increase in number of vehicles from 82 lakh (8.8 million) in 2007 to 1.6 crore (16 million) in 2012 without appreciable change in the road infrastructure is also believed to the reason for most collisions.

Contents

Road collisions

Collision data
YearCollisionsCasualties
20008,2699,300
20018,5799,571
20029,0129,939
20038,3939,275
20048,7339,507
20058,8449,760
200610,05511,009
200711,03412,036
200811,81312,784
200912,72713,746
201014,24115,409
201114,35915,422
201215,07216,175
201314,50415,563
201671,43117,218
201765,56217,926
201863,92018,394
201957,22818,129
202045,48914,527
Footnote: Sources: [1] [2] [3] [4]

According to a report released by the Tamil Nadu Police in 2013, there were a total of 15,563 fatalities in 14,504 recorded collisions. The corresponding number of people sustaining grievous injuries in 4,715 collisions was 6,513, and the number of people who sustained minor injuries was 69,168 in 44,158 collisions. A total of 2,861 people escaped injuries. [5] The state also topped the list of most collisions among all states for all previous ten years from 2002 to 2012. It was estimated that were around eight collisions every hour and a total of 15 percent of all collisions in the country occurred in the state. The data from National Crime Record Bureau indicated that the state capital, Chennai, had 9,663 collisions, the most of any city in India in 2012. [6] During 1990, the state stood second behind Uttar Pradesh in the country with 6,693 recorded collisions. [7]

As per the report published by the State transport authority in 2013, out of 66,238 collisions, two-wheelers were involved in 22,496 collisions, cars, jeeps, taxis and tempos in 18,658, trucks in 9,192, government buses in 3,765, private buses in 3,564, three-wheelers in 2,983 and others in 5,580. [8] As per the same report, 20,686 collisions occurred in national highways, 20,984 in state highways, 17,401 in district roads and remaining 7,167 in village roads. [9]

Causes

The National Police Commission report indicates that the number of collisions is directly proportional to the population density, road length and traffic volume. A report by West Bengal National University of Juridical Science indicated in 1999 that there were not enough traffic police in the state to control and handle collisions. [10] During 1999, the number of collisions involving two-wheelers and three-wheelers doubled in the state compared to 1998, on account of the increased number of auto rickshaws and motorised fish carts. [11]

In 2011–2012, a total of 19,436 cases were filed in the state, while the capital, Chennai, accounted for 3,855 cases. The increase in the number of government-run TASMAC shops (which have a monopoly over wholesale and retail vending of alcoholic beverages) and a corresponding increase in the number of drunk drivers were cited as the major reasons for collisions caused by drunk drivers. [12] According to the report of two experts published in the International Journal of Research in Management and Technology, driving under the influence of alcohol accounts for 70 percent of collision fatalities in India. [12] The state registered the largest increase in number of vehicles from 82 lakh in 2007 to 1.6 crore in 2012 among all states in the country. The increase in the number of vehicles without appreciable change in the road infrastructure is also believed to the reason for most collisions. [13]

According to Tamil Nadu police, the other major reason for the collisions is the increase in the number of vehicles compared to the road length. Some experts believe that the surveillance by traffic police is biased and enforcement of rules alone is not sufficient. Some non-governmental organizations have claimed that urban planning has not kept pace with the increase in number of vehicles. The state-owned buses are also cited as a major cause for the collisions, with a total of 1,300 collisions during 2012. [6]

As per the report published by the state transport authority in 2013, 63,658 were caused by the fault of drivers, 779 by passengers other than driver, 1,007 by pedestrians, 206 by mechanical defects, 140 by road condition, 97 by bad weather and 351 by other reasons. [14]

Drunk driving

"Drunken driving is the most serious menace where road accidents are concerned".

~ Karunasagar, Additional Commissioner (Traffic),Symbiotic link between alcohol and crime?, 21 January 2013 [12]

The driver involved in a collision is subject to a breathalyzer test to detect alcohol in his blood. If the driver is deemed to be drunk, the vehicle is impounded by the police and a fine is levied to reclaim the vehicle from the court under the jurisdiction of the collision spot. In case of casualties, a case is filed against the driver under Section 304(a) of Indian Penal Code IPC for "culpable homicide not amounting to murder". The driver's license is either suspended or cancelled based on the severity of the collision. [12]

The district police were empowered to levy spot fines against drunk drivers as of February 2012, a practise that had been followed only by city police up to that time. [12]

Some public interest groups allege that collisions causing fatalities were under-reported in Tamil Nadu to ease the processing of insurance claims. They also claim that cases are filed under Section 304(a) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and most cases are settled out of court. In 2011 the Supreme Court of India ordered cases of fatal collision caused by drunk drivers to be registered by the state police under IPC Section 304(2) of the IPC (culpable homicide, not amounting to murder), removing the possibility of bail from offenders. [15]

Awareness

The state is the first among the states in India to introduce a road safety policy in 2007. The state also introduced a road safety action plan in 2009 that involved tracking collision records through a Technology called Geographical Information Systems (GIS). The GIS system was accessible to the police in the 1,400 police stations in the state, who entered the collision data. The trends provided by the data was used to identify 3,000 potential collision spots, number of people involved, background of the people involved, timing of the collisions and also the type of collision. The state traffic planning cell and the additional director general of police head the action plan. Placing sign boards, building barriers and improving the street lighting are some of the actions taken based on the inputs from the software. [13] [16]

S. Ramadoss, the leader of Pattali Makkal Katchi, and Vaiko, the leader of Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, are two prominent leaders in Tamil Nadu who have vehemently opposed the state-run TASMAC shops in various forums and have called for prohibition of alcohol in the state. [12] [17] [18] Most consumer forums allege that the state government is not moving towards total prohibition as the revenue from the TASMAC shops forms a fifth of the total revenue to the government as of 2013. [19] [20] Both the opposing state governments under Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) are against the closing of the shops, stating prohibition would come at a big risk of illicit liquor, which in the past has claimed several hundred lives. [21] According to the Tamil Nadu police, though consumption of alcohol results in major crimes and collisions, total prohibition may lead to other potential issues like black market trade. The police have recommended stricter traffic laws and introduction of smart cards to record the crime history of the drivers electronically. [12] The state police stated during 2012 that public awareness was created and the officers were educated to improve reaction time to emergencies. [6]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Collision details for Tamil Nadu in certain years" (PDF). State transport authority, Government of Tamil Nadu. 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  2. ↑ Sivaraman, R. (20 January 2021). "State sees sharp drop in road accident fatalities". The Hindu. ISSN   0971-751X . Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  3. ↑ Jagannath, G. "New data adds 22K more fatalities on TN roads since 2017". DT next. Retrieved 17 August 2022.
  4. ↑ Road Accident Analysis In Tamil Nadu. Transport Department, Government of Tamil Nadu. 2020. pp. 4, 5.
  5. ↑ Handbook on Police Department 2013 (PDF) (Report). Tamil Nadu Police Department. 1 January 2014. p. 22. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 Hemalatha, Karthikeyan (24 June 2013). "For 10th year in a row, Tamil Nadu tops India in road accidents". TNN. The Times of India. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  7. ↑ Agrawal 1993, p. 9
  8. ↑ "Accident details for Tamil Nadu by type of vehicles" (PDF). State transport authority, Government of Tamil Nadu. 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  9. ↑ "Accident details for Tamil Nadu according to type of roads" (PDF). State transport authority, Government of Tamil Nadu. 2013. Retrieved 22 March 2014.
  10. ↑ Menon, D. 2003, p. 63
  11. ↑ Menon, D. 2003, p. 25
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R, Guhambika; U, Tejonmayam (21 January 2013). "Symbiotic link between alcohol and crime?". ENS - Chennai. The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  13. 1 2 Ahluwalia 2014, chapter. 6
  14. ↑ "Road accidents according to causes" (PDF). State Transport Authority, Government of Tamil Nadu. 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  15. ↑ Hemalatha, Karthikeyan (25 August 2012). "TN claims podium in booze-fuelled crashes". The Times of India . Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  16. ↑ Loo, Yao 2012, p. 461
  17. ↑ "Fight is on to make State free of alcohol". The Hindu. Erode. 28 April 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  18. ↑ "Vaiko vows to work for total prohibition". The Hindu. Chennai. 5 February 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  19. ↑ "The alcohol economy". Business Line. 8 December 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  20. ↑ "Tamil Nadu earns revenue of over Rs 21,680 crore from liquor sale". The Economic Times. Chennai. 14 May 2013. Retrieved 1 January 2014.
  21. ↑ Srinivasan, Sangeetha; Srinivasan, Sriram (22 April 2011). "Bottles of Booze Fund Tamil Nadu's Freebie Rain". The Times of India. Chennai. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 1 January 2014.

Related Research Articles

Drunk driving is the act of operating a motor vehicle with the operator's ability to do so impaired as a result of alcohol consumption, or with a blood alcohol level in excess of the legal limit. For drivers 21 years or older, driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08% or higher is illegal. For drivers under 21 years old, the legal limit is lower, with state limits ranging from 0.00 to 0.02. Lower BAC limits apply when operating boats, airplanes, or commercial vehicles. Among other names, the criminal offense of drunk driving may be called driving under the influence (DUI), driving while intoxicated or impaired (DWI), operating [a] vehicle under the influence of alcohol (OVI), or operating while impaired (OWI).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Road traffic safety</span> Methods and measures for reducing the risk of death and injury on roads

Road traffic safety refers to the methods and measures used to prevent road users from being killed or seriously injured. Typical road users include pedestrians, cyclists, motorists, vehicle passengers, and passengers of on-road public transport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Transport Corporation (Chennai)</span> Public transport in Chennai

The Metropolitan Transport Corporation (Chennai) Ltd. (MTC), is the agency that operates the public bus service in Chennai, India. It is a subsidiary of Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation Ltd. As of August 2024 the MTC had a total fleet of 3,376 buses with 3,233 scheduled services, with on average 3.092 Million passengers on an average per day. On March 22, 2016, the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways reported that Chennai had the most crowded buses in the country with 1300 passengers per bus in each direction per day. During peak hours, on some routes, a bus with a capacity to accommodate 80 persons carries twice the number of people due to the extensiveness of the system. It has an operating area of 3,929 square kilometres (1,517 sq mi). MTC has a total of 668 routes with its largest terminus being Broadway in Central Chennai.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transport in Chennai</span>

Transport in Chennai includes various modes of air, sea, road and rail transportation in the city and its suburbs. Chennai's economic development has been closely tied to its port and transport infrastructure, and it is considered one of the best infrastructure systems in India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Road toll (Australia and New Zealand)</span>

Road toll is the term used in New Zealand and Australia for the number of deaths caused annually by road accidents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mobile phones and driving safety</span> Cell phone use during driving and its safety

Mobile phone use while driving is common but it is dangerous due to its potential for causing distracted driving and subsequent crashes. Due to the number of crashes that are related to conducting calls on a phone and texting while driving, some jurisdictions have made the use of calling on a phone while driving illegal in an attempt to curb the practice, with varying levels of efficacy. Many jurisdictions have enacted laws making handheld mobile phone use illegal. Many jurisdictions allow use of a hands-free device. Driving while using a hands-free device has been found by some studies to provide little to no benefit versus holding the device itself and carrying on a conversation. In some cases restrictions are directed only at minors, those who are newly qualified license holders, or to drivers in school zones. In addition to voice calling, activities such as texting while driving, web browsing, playing video games, or phone use in general may also increase the risk of a crash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transportation safety in the United States</span> Overview of transportation safety

Transportation safety in the United States encompasses safety of transportation in the United States, including automobile crashes, airplane crashes, rail crashes, and other mass transit incidents, although the most fatalities are generated by road incidents annually killing 32,479 people in 2011 to over 42,000 people in 2022. The number of deaths per passenger-mile on commercial airlines in the United States between 2000 and 2010 was about 0.2 deaths per 10 billion passenger-miles. For driving, the rate was 150 per 10 billion vehicle-miles: 750 times higher per mile than for flying in a commercial airplane. For a person who drives a million miles in a lifetime this amounts to a 1.5% chance of death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Driving in the United States</span>

86 percent of people in the United States use private automobiles as their primary form of transportation to their workplace.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traffic collision</span> Incident when a vehicle collides with another object

A traffic collision, also known as a motor vehicle collision, or car crash, occurs when a vehicle collides with another vehicle, pedestrian, animal, road debris, or other moving or stationary obstruction, such as a tree, pole or building. Traffic collisions often result in injury, disability, death, and property damage as well as financial costs to both society and the individuals involved. Road transport is statistically the most dangerous situation people deal with on a daily basis, but casualty figures from such incidents attract less media attention than other, less frequent types of tragedy. The commonly used term car accident is increasingly falling out of favor with many government departments and organizations, with the Associated Press style guide recommending caution before using the term. Some collisions are intentional vehicle-ramming attacks, staged crashes, vehicular homicide or vehicular suicide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcohol prohibition in India</span>

Alcohol is prohibited in the states of Bihar, Gujarat, Mizoram, and Nagaland. All other Indian states and union territories permit the sale of alcohol.

The Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) is a company owned by the Government of Tamil Nadu, which has a monopoly over wholesale and retail vending of alcoholic beverages in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It controls the Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) trade in the state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drunk driving</span> Operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol

Drunk driving is the act of driving under the influence of alcohol. A small increase in the blood alcohol content increases the relative risk of a motor vehicle crash.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alcohol-related traffic crashes in the United States</span>

Alcohol-related traffic crashes are defined by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as alcohol-related if either a driver or a non-motorist had a measurable or estimated BAC of 0.01 g/dl or above.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hit and run</span> Failing to stop after causing or contributing to a traffic collision

In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the criminal act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traffic collisions in India</span> Overview of traffic collisions in India

Traffic collisions in India are a major source of deaths, injuries and property damage every year. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 2021 report states that there were 155,622 fatalities, highest since 2014, out of which 69,240 deaths were due to two-wheelers. A study by Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, U.S. shows that the use of seat belts significantly reduces the risks and injuries from road accidents, and yet there is no enforcement on use of seat belts in cars. A study by IIT Delhi points out that the national highways constitute only 2% of the length of roads in India, but they account for 30.3% of total road accidents and 36% of deaths.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Department of Home, Prohibition and Excise</span> Government department of Tamil Nadu state, India

The Department of Home, Prohibition and Excise is one of the departments of Government of Tamil Nadu.

The 2013 Little India riot took place on 8 December 2013 after a fatal accident occurred at SST 21:23 at the junction of Race Course Road and Hampshire Road in Little India, Singapore, causing angry mobs of migrant labourers from South Asia to attack the bus involved and emergency vehicles that had by then arrived at the location. About 300 migrant labourers were involved in the riot which lasted for around two hours. This was the second riot in post-independence Singapore, and the first in 44 years since the 1969 race riots. The riots led to stricter laws and higher penalties on alcohol consumption and sales, culminating in the Liquor Control Act in 2015.

Violence against women in Tamil Nadu includes molestation, abduction, dowry-related violence, and domestic violence. The police recorded 1,130 cases during the first seven months in 2013, compared to 860 for the corresponding period in 2012. In Usilampatti Taluk, around 6,000 female children were killed in a span of 2 years during 1987–88, accounting to the single largest instance of recorded female infanticide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motor Vehicles Act</span> Motor vehicle act in India

The Motor Vehicles Act is an Act of the Parliament of India which regulates all aspects of road transport vehicles. The Act provides in detail the legislative provisions regarding licensing of drivers/conductors, registration of motor vehicles, control of motor vehicles through permits, special provisions relating to state transport undertakings, traffic regulation, insurance, liability, offences and penalties, etc. For exercising the legislative provisions of the Act, the Government of India made the Central Motor Vehicles Rules 1989.

Alcohol prohibition in Tamil Nadu is governed by the State Prohibition and Excise department as per the Tamil Nadu Prohibition Act, 1937. TASMAC, a state government-owned company, controls the wholesale and retail vending of alcoholic beverages in the State. On 24 May 2016, after her swearing-in, J. Jayalalitha announced the closing of 500 liquor shops and the reduction of the business hours of State-run liquor shops across the State. On 20 February 2017, the first office order signed by the Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami was the closure of 500 liquor outlets owned by the public sector TASMAC. This is in addition to the 500 liquor outlets closed down by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in May 2016.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.