Indian roads were at their deadliest in 2014 claiming more than 16 lives every hour on average. Over 1.41 lakh people died in crashes, 3% more than the number of fatalities in 2013. The numbers of crashes and of people left injured stands at 4.5 lakh and 4.8 lakh respectively.
According to the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau ( NCRB), speeding and dangerous driving were the biggest reasons for road fatalities. Accidents involving two-wheelers and trucks & lorries accounted for nearly half of the lives lost in road crashes. The top five states – Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Rajasthan – accounted for over 40% of the fatalities. UP topped the list with 16,284 deaths, but Tamil Nadu with over 15,000 lives lost was much worse given its relatively smaller size.
Among 53 mega cities, Delhi registered the highest number of fatalities at 2,199 and Chennai recorded 1,046 such deaths. Bhopal and Jaipur ranked third and fourth with the city roads claiming 1,015 and 844 lives respectively.
India has a road network of over 4,689,842 kilometres and it is the second largest road network in the world.
The Grand Trunk Road built by Sher Shah Suri 1540 to 1545, began in Sonargaon near Dhaka in Bangladesh and ended at Peshawar in modern-day Pakistan.
Indian roads are classified into
1. National Highways
2. State Highways
3. Major and Other District Roads
4. Rural Roads
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is an autonomous agency of the GOI, responsible for management of a network of over 70,000 km of National Highways in India.
Test Your Knowledge
- Who is the current Chairman of National Highways Authority of India? Vijay Chhibber
- Who is the current Minister for Road Transport & Highways? Nitin Gadkari
