HYDERABAD: Over 1,37000 people were killed in road accidents in 2013 alone, that is more than the number of people killed in all our wars put together. A steady increase in these numbers is a rising concern in the country as many youngsters continue to lose their life on the roads every day.
While some are unavoidable and can be called an Act of God, there are few that could have been averted if the people involved exercised caution. For instance, the past few years, Hyderabad has been witness to several celebrities looking their kith and kin in such avoidable accidents. Who is to be blamed? The roads? The appalling traffic violations or fancy car and bikes, that is assumed for speeding?
Ullasanga Utsahanga movie hero Yasho Sagar also died in a road accident, a few years ago. Politicians Sobha Nagireddy, Gopinadh Munde and many others lost their lives in road accidents. It is said that, when people use fancy cars and bikes, they assume that the high CC the vehicles holds is for speeding. Little do they understand that the roads in our country are not meant for speeding.
Renowned psychologist Radhika Acharya opined that road rage is killing everyone and not just celebs. “It is more predominant among celebs because they have the financial freedom. Rich parents are unable to monitor their children’s spends. They provide their kids with everything they ask as compensation. There is a status issue added to this. For example, when one rich parent gifts his son a fancy bike, his friend wants to better it and gift a better and high end car to his son to prove a point. Such unnecessary oneupmanship can cost lives.”
She goes on to add that they are overly pampered. “They have the tendency of immediate gratifaction which can make kids arrogant. They get impulsive if their desires are not met. When they are speeding, they feel ecstatic. We try to repeat whatever gives us satisfaction. Speed gives us such a feeling. Excessive dopamine makes us feel euphoric. Only during the euphoric state, these incidents take place. They have costly bikes/cars, accessibility and no control for their behaviour. Ultimately, they have to face consequences,” she adds.
Babu Mohan’s son- Pavan Kumar
Babu Mohan, the yesterday actor and politician lost his son Pavan Kumar in a brutal road accident. Apparently Pavan Kumar was going from Rasoolpura to Jubliee Hills on his bike when the accident took place. He collided to a road divider and injured himself. He died by the time he was taken to the hospital. This accident dates back to 2003. Babu Mohan was in utter shock and he has still not coped with the loss.
Ravi Teja’s brother- Bharath Raju
The most recent one is the horrific car accident involving Actor Bharat, popularly known as Telugu star Ravi Teja’s brother in June 2019. While the late actor was infamous as a regular offender with numerous police cases filed for possession of drugs, and many attribute the same to his accident, the exact reason for the accident is yet to be understood. There are have been many instances where the who’s who in Hyderabad have lost their loved ones to fatal road accidents.
Harikrishna’s son- Janaki Ram
Janakiram, son of Former MP Nandamuri Harikrishna, succumbed to injuries when his car met with an accident near Akupamula crossroads on the Hyderabad-Vijayawada highway where his Tata Safari vehicle rammed an oncoming tractor. The accident dates back to 2014. It was the tractor that was coming from the wrong side and collided with his car. When villagers came to his rescue, he gave his brother Kalyan Ram’s number and asked them to inform him about the accident.
Kota Srinivas Rao’s son- Prasad
Kota Prasad, the 39-year-old son of veteran actor and former BJP MLA, Kota Srinivasa Rao, was killed in a road accident in 2010, when his sports bike rammed into a van at an intersection near the AP Police Academy. The swanky sports bike lost balance and slid under the wheels of the van when Prasad applied the brakes of the 1,000 cc bike on spotting the oncoming vehicle.
Azharrudin’s son- Ayaz
19-year-old Ayaz, son of Member of Parliament and former Indian cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin, died five days after being involved in a motorcycle crash in 2011. Ayaz, a promising young cricketer in the making, met with the fatal accident when he was on a joy ride on his brand new imported 1000 cm Suzuki bike along the Outer Ring Road of Hyderabad. He was with his friends for racing. It is believed that he received multiple internal and external injuries when he fell off his bike that he drove at a speed of 200 km.
Narayana Rao’s son- Nishit
P Nishit, son of Andhra Pradesh Municipal Administration Minister P Narayana, was driving home in a Mercedes Benz car around 3 am and was killed when his car rammed into a metro rail pillar on a partially submerged road late at night in June 2017. The accident happened in May, this year. The Merc was being driven at 150 kmph. Although police did not reveal if he was under the influence of alcohol, people suspect that they might have been on spirit as they were returning from a party.
Komatireddy Venkata Reddy’s son Prateek Reddy
Prateek Reddy, son of politician Venkata Reddy died in a road accident in 2011 near Kollur, when their Skoda car met with an accident. He was driving with his friends at a speed of 120 kmph. At the time of accident, his friend was driving the car. He lost control of the car and ran into the divider. Prateek Reddy lost his life on the spot in this accident. This accident took place in 2011.