RAMANATHAPURAM: Considering the increasing number of fatal and non-fatal accidents in the district, the police are taking actions to prevent accidents, including the installation of blinkers and reflector stickers in multiple locations, said Superintendent of Police P Thangadurai, adding that around 1,000
cases, including traffic rule violations, are booked in the district per day.
"In January, more than 122 road accidents, including 22 fatal accidents with 24 deaths were reported in Ramanathapuram. Similarly, an average of two to three accidents in a day were reported in February in the district. Almost all the accidents were caused due to rash driving and traffic rule violations. Senior police officials from the district stated that the number of accidents and fatal accidents reported in the month of January was slightly larger than the previous year," the data reveals.
According to sources, though the district administration, the road safety committee, NHAI, and police departments have been taking several steps towards bringing down the number of road accidents in the district, the numbers continue to remain the same. "Noting that roadside silt has been one of the major reasons behind accidents, the NHAI and district administration have been taking efforts to clean the silt off the road in a periodical manner in accident-prone areas," sources added.
Thangadurai said the police department is taking action towards bringing down the number of road accidents in the district. "Apart from placing warning signs and speed limit boards, the department is stringently penalising traffic rule violators. An average of 1,000 cases are booked in the district per day. As per suggestions from the road safety committee, we have taken steps to place blinkers in 12 locations, reflector strips in 14 locations in the district and signals at crossings. Other preventive measures to prevent road accidents are also being taken by the police," he added.
Local activists state that speeding is a major cause of almost all the fatal accidents that occur in the district. Apart from the actions taken by the police, the people need to be aware of the speed limits on roads and abide by them to prevent fatal accidents in the district, they added.