| From 1,867 to 1,109: Accidents fall, but J&K's highways remain killing fields | | | Muskan Thakur
Early Times Report
Jammu, July 30: Jammu and Kashmir's national highways turned deadlier on a per-accident basis even as the overall crash count fell sharply in 2026, according to fresh data tabled by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in the Lok Sabha on Thursday.
The Union Territory recorded 1,109 road accidents and 206 fatalities on its National Highways and expressways during the year, with 1,658 people injured, the Ministry said, citing figures sourced from the government's e-DAR portal.
The numbers point to a steady decline in the sheer volume of crashes over the past five years — from 2,378 accidents in 2022 to 2,342 in 2023, 2,120 in 2024, 1,867 in 2025, and now 1,109 in 2026.
Fatalities, however, have followed a far more erratic and troubling trajectory, climbing from 259 deaths in 2022 to 294 in 2023, dipping slightly to 271 in 2024, then spiking to 431 in 2025 before falling back to 206 in 2026.
The Ministry cautioned that 2026 figures remain partial, since e-DAR reporting is still ongoing, and urged that year-on-year comparisons be read with that caveat in mind. Data, it added, is compiled from information submitted by States and Union Territories.
A closer look at who is dying on J&K's highways reveals a grim spread across age groups. Of the 206 killed in 2026, 17 were minors under 18, while 25 were aged 18-25 and 40 fell in the 25-35 bracket — together accounting for the largest share of victims in their most productive years. Another 29 deaths were recorded among those aged 35-45, 28 among the 45-60 group, and 12 among people above 60. The age of 55 victims could not be established.
On the treatment front, Jammu and Kashmir has logged 472 claims initiated by hospitals under the PM-RAHAT scheme — the Centre's cashless treatment initiative for road accident victims — as of July 28, 2026. Of these, only 51 have been approved by the State Health Authority and 43 settled so far. Strikingly, the amount actually paid out under these claims stood at Rs 0.0 crore, according to the annexure tabled in Parliament.
By contrast, Ladakh's much smaller numbers tell a starkly different story of efficiency: all 12 claims initiated under PM-RAHAT in the union territory were both approved and settled — though here too, the disbursed amount was recorded as Rs 0.0 crore. Ladakh itself reported 119 accidents, 17 deaths and 177 injuries on its highways in 2026. |
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