BENGALURU: Karnataka is second only to Tamil Nadu in the number of accidents grievously injured in accidents during the past year. According to the Road Accidents in India 2014 report by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Karnataka was placed fourth in terms of fatalities recorded and fifth in the number of accidents.
In the State, 43,713 accidents were reported in 2014, which apart from 10,452 deaths, resulted in injuries to 56,831 persons. The report also reveals that the number of fatalities also increased in Karnataka, as compared to the past three years.
Severity of accidents, measured by the number of deaths per 100 accidents, also saw an increase from 22.8 in 2013 to 23.9 in 2014. Rural areas recorded more accidents than urban parts, with 27,096 accidents, 7,445 fatalities and injuries to 37,609 persons. Highest number of fatalities were reported in stretches of national highways, followed by state highways. In urban areas 16,617 accidents were recorded with 3,007 fatalities and injuries to 19,222 persons. Among the type of accidents, head-on collisions were responsible for highest number of deaths, followed by overturning and rear-end collisions.
Bengaluru figures
Of all the major cities in the country, Bengaluru was third in the number of fatalities (729), behind New Delhi and Chennai. The 703 accidents in the city in 2014 resulted in injuries to 4,098 persons.
However, the severity of accidents in Bengaluru city was much below the State average, with 14.6 deaths per 100 accidents. M N Sreehari, traffic expert said that places have to be designated along the stretch of highways for people to cross, along with proper lighting. “Awareness on road safety should be increased in rural areas. Civic bodies too have an important role to play in preventing the number of accidents and fatalities,” he said.