Editorial: Preventable tragedies

The death of former Tata Group chairman Cyrus Mistry in a road accident in Maharashtra’s Palgar district is a wake-up call for road safety in India which accounts for more than 11% of the total fatalities in road mishaps worldwide. What is more disturbing is that a majority of these tragedies are preventable. The critical […]

The death of former Tata Group chairman Cyrus Mistry in a road accident in Maharashtra’s Palgar district is a wake-up call for road safety in India which accounts for more than 11% of the total fatalities in road mishaps worldwide. What is more disturbing is that a majority of these tragedies are preventable. The critical aspects of road safety include speed limits, airbag deployment, wrong-lane driving and seat-belt protection. It has now emerged that what proved fatal was that Mistry was not wearing the seat belt when the speeding car crashed into a divider. Though there were seven airbags in the car, the impact proved fatal as the rear passengers were not wearing seat belts. Seat belts have been a perennial enforcement pain point. Report after report by various panels and organisations have pointed out that enforcement of this rule was among the most challenging — and that this was needed to save lives. According to a report on road accidents by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, as many as 15,146 deaths occurred in 2020 due to “non wearing of seat belts,” accounting for 11.5% of the total 1.31 lakh deaths in road accidents in the country. Seat belts and airbags work together; having one without the other significantly decreases the safety of the occupants in case of a crash. While the seat belt holds the passenger in place, the airbag cushions the head and chest from forward impact. There is a need to make it mandatory to provide a minimum of six airbags in vehicles that can carry up to eight passengers for enhanced safety.

The mandatory wearing of the seat belt by passengers in the rear seat of the car, as provided by the law, could have saved Mistry’s life. Though the amended Motor Vehicles Act prescribes a fine for not wearing a seat belt, the rule is observed more in the breach than in practice. According to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report, wearing a seat belt reduces the risk of death among drivers and front-seat occupants by nearly 50% and the risk of death and serious injuries among rear-seat occupants by 25%. Correct helmet use can lead to a reduction of 42% in the risk of fatal injuries among two-wheeler riders and 69% in the risk of head injuries. India is a signatory to the United Nations road safety plan which aims to reduce road fatalities by 50% by 2030. Ultimately, road safety is about self-discipline and disciplining those on the roads. When over-speeding, illegal overtaking, travelling without seat belts and jumping lights go unchecked and unpunished, every stretch of road becomes a public safety risk. According to National Crime Records Bureau data for 2021, a majority of the road accidents —59.7% — were due to over-speeding, accounting for 87,050 deaths.

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