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| 83 dead since Jan | | |
Chaman Kaul
Jammu, May 4: With Monday morning’s ghastly incident near Kishtwar, the total death toll in the major road accidents in Doda region (erstwhile Doda district) has touched 83 since January this year.
Roads are becoming more horrible than militants in the area as militants were less active than road accidents as per the records. In January 2009 accident claimed 12 lives, in February dreadful accident took 41 lives and on 4th May 30 people lost their precious lives. Most concerning is that 90 percent dead were the government employees, with education department mostly, bread earners for their families.
Old vehicles, narrow roads, untrained and drank driving, traffic rules violation and above all mis-management of traffic used to be some excuses by the government to diffuse the anger of kith and kin of accident victims. Besides extending condolences to the families of deceased or some times paying compensation was a known trend in the State.
Jammu and Kashmir government after the February accidents proposed to rope in Central Road Research Institute (CRRI) to prepare a detailed report on the accidents in the State, particularly in the hilly areas (Doda-Kishtwar) where poor road network is believed to be the cause for mishaps, can be prevented.
Besides, experts from the Geology Department were asked to suggest whether accidents occur due to roads or due to geological imbalance, of which certain political apprehended that construction of dam without proper survey, could be the reason of accidents.
Senior Superintendent of Police for traffic, National Highway, Alok Kumar while talking to early Times informed that besides narrow road way because of damaged road and loss of control by the driver for his over loaded vehicle caused the mishap resulted in death of thirty passengers.
Experts have been suggesting that to combating the menace a nodal agency with effective road map should come up besides seminars and a series of interactive sessions with the civil society should be organized before formulating a realistic plan. It is ironic that Public Works Department, traffic police and other allied departments lack coordination between them otherwise situation of vehicular movement should have been less dangerous.
“It is immaterial whether government comes up with a concrete plan for those who lost lives till now. After every accident government of the day promises to formulate new plans of road safety but forgets after couple of days” said Saleem Kitchloo. He added that if government is concerned with the people of the area it should come up with a concrete policy of road safety otherwise it will be too late as majority of the people in the area restrict traveling in buses and mini-buses due to dreaded accidents.
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