In February 2025, the Government of India (GoI) was honored with the ‘Prince Michael Decade of Action Road Safety Award’, the highest award in the field, at the 4th Ministerial Conference on Road Safety held in Marrakech, Morocco. India shared this honor with the Kingdom of Morocco, as both countries were recognized for their efforts in improving road safety.
- The conference was organised by the Kingdom of Morocco and the World Health Organization (WHO). The theme of the conference is “Commit to Life”.
- The Ministerial Conference united transportation leaders from multiple countries to create a strategic plan focused on reducing global road fatalities by 50% by 2030, emphasizing the global collaboration to enhance road safety.
Key Points:
i.India was recognized for advancements in vehicle safety since 2014, including the introduction of a ‘new car safety assessment program’ and the mandatory implementation of ‘Anti-lock Braking Systems’ (ABS) in all new 2-wheelers.
ii.The award was presented by Etienne Krug, Director of the Department for Social Determinants of Health, WHO to Union Minister of State (MoS) Ajay Tamta, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), on behalf of the Indian Government.
India’s Key Initiatives:
i.Car Safety Assessment Program: In 2014, following independent crash tests of Indian cars, MoRTH of India introduced a new framework for vehicle safety standards.
ii.ABS for 2-Wheelers: In 2018, the Indian government mandated that all new 2-wheelers be equipped with ABS, aligning with European safety standards.
India’s Key Achievements in Vehicle Safety:
i.In 2018, the Government of India outlined a roadmap to align the nation’s vehicle safety standards with European benchmarks by 2023.
ii.NH Network: Over the last decade, the length of India’s National Highway (NH) network has surged by 60%, increasing from 91,287 kilometer (km) in 2014 to 146,195 km in 2024, making it the 2nd-largest road network in the world.
iii.NHSC: India’s National High-Speed Corridors (NHSC) have expanded from just 93 km in 2014 to 2,474 km in 2024.
- The rapid growth of India’s highway network has been driven by government-led initiatives, such as the flagship ‘Bharatmala Pariyojana program’.
iv.Externally Aided Projects: An additional 2,540 km of highways have been constructed through projects funded by the United States of America (USA) based World Bank (WB), Japan based Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), and the Philippines based Asian Development Bank (ADB).
About Morocco:
Prime Minister (PM)- Aziz Akhannouch
Capital- Rabat
Currency- Moroccan Dirham (MAD)
