HYDERABAD: In the wake of the recent spate of road accidents in the state, Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar on Monday held an emergency review meeting via Zoom with senior officials of the Transport Department. Special Chief Secretary Vikas Raj, Transport Commissioner Ilambarathi, Joint Transport Commissioners, Deputy Transport Commissioners, and other senior officials attended the meeting.
Expressing serious concern over the rising number of accidents, the minister directed officials to take strict preventive and enforcement measures to enhance road safety. He noted that in the Chevella tragedy on Monday morning, both vehicles involved had valid fitness certificates, but the absence of a road divider and the narrow width of the stretch contributed to the severity of the crash.
“The enforcement system must be active and consistent-not just during or after accidents,” he emphasised. “Officers should maintain continuous action plans, ensure effective monitoring, and avoid complacency.”
He instructed officials to inspect the implementation of speed-lock mechanisms on vehicles and to impose triple penalties on operators found tampering with them.
Ponnam stressed the need for coordinated functioning among senior and newly recruited officers and called on the department to uphold its credibility and public confidence through transparent, rule-based operations.
Ponnam directed District Transport Commissioners, Regional Transport Officers, and other officials in each district to form three monitoring teams to conduct continuous inspections. He ordered strict penalties and legal action against commercial, passenger, and mining vehicles violating safety norms, and special checks on sleeper buses illegally carrying cargo.
He also instructed that a district-level action plan be prepared for inspecting the fitness and permits of school buses, hire buses, trucks, tippers, and lorries.
The minister said tippers transporting sand and dust must compulsorily use tarpaulin covers. At the same time, farmers transporting agricultural produce in rural areas should not face unnecessary harassment.
Calling for effective coordination, the minister said road safety awareness must be intensified ahead of the upcoming Road Safety Month, and that preventive measures should be implemented immediately.
He warned that any negligence by officials would invite disciplinary action and reiterated the goal of making the state’s roads safer.
