Road accident deaths: Assam ranks second in Northeast

New Delhi: Assam registered the second highest death rate per lakh population in road traffic incidents after Arunachal Pradesh among the north-eastern states, data from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MORTH) revealed.

As per data, Assam registered an 8.52 percent death rate after a 9.63 percent death rate per lakh population registered by Arunachal Pradesh in 2022.

People in the age group 25-35 years, followed by persons aged 35 to 45 and 10-15 years of age, bear the maximum fatalities in road accidents. According to the data, factors that lead to such road accidents include inappropriate and excessive speed, young people, particularly males, shift workers, people with untreated sleep apnoea syndrome or narcolepsy, and high-risk driving behaviours when young people are in a vehicle together.

Being a vulnerable road user in urban and residential areas, handheld mobile telephones while driving, travelling in darkness or poor lighting, vehicle factors, including braking, handling, and maintenance, as well as defects in road design, layout, and maintenance, are some of the other major factors that lead to road accidents.

Road accidents can also be caused by unmanned or dysfunctional signal systems at road crossings, potholes, inadequate visibility due to environmental factors, poor eyesight of road users or colour blindness, health impairment (sudden illness such as myocardial infarction, stroke, hypoglycemia, epilepsy), and driving under the influence of alcohol and other drugs.

"Despite efforts to improve road safety, India continues to grapple with a high number of fatalities due to road traffic incidents. The mortality ratio remains constant at approximately 86 percent for males and 14 percent for females," the report said. "Over-speeding is the leading cause of these deaths, accounting for a staggering 75.2 percent of fatalities. Other major contributing factors include driving on the wrong side of the road (5.8) percent and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (2.5 percent)," it said.

Such traffic violations highlight the need for stricter enforcement and public awareness campaigns.

States like Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Karnataka reported the highest number of road accident deaths in 2022, contributing 13.41 percent, 10.61 percent, 9.03 percent, 7.96 percent, and 6.94 percent, respectively.

However, death rates per lakh population reflect a different picture where Tamil Nadu (23.38 percent), Ladakh (20.81 percent), Telangana (20.01 percent), Chhattisgarh (19.70 percent), and Karnataka (17.47 percent) rank highest in the list, which emphasises the need for targeted interventions in these regions.

A correspondent