According to World Health Organisation (WHO)’s report titled “WHO South-East Asia Regional Status Report on Road Safety: Towards Safer and Sustainable Mobility”, India reported an increase in estimated road traffic deaths by 2% during 2010-2021 period.
- The report was released at the 15th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion (Safety 2024) held at Taj Palace in New Delhi, Delhi.
Note: The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) launched the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030 in September 2020. It aims to reduce road traffic deaths and injuries by at least 50% by 2030.
India-Specific Findings:
i.As per WHO report, India reported around 1,53,973 road traffic fatalities in 2021 and has reported around 2,16,618 road deaths in the same period.
ii.As per WHO estimates, the highest number of people who died in road accidents in India, were drivers or riders of motorized two/three wheelers (45.1%), followed by pedestrians (at nearly 19%) and drivers or passengers of motorized four-wheelers (at 12.9%).
- While, cyclists accounts 3.1% of road traffic deaths and 20% by others.
Key Findings:
i.The report has outlined that vulnerable road users like: motorized two and three-wheelers and pedestrians constituting the total reported traffic deaths in India.
ii.As per WHO estimates, as many as 3,30,222 deaths were reported in the South-East Region (SEARO) in 2021 due to Road Traffic Injuries (RTI), which accounts about 28% of global road traffic deaths.
iii.WHO has called on the South-East Region, which comprises 11 member countries, including India, to accelerate measures to reduce road traffic deaths, a leading cause of mortality among people aged between 15 and 29.
iv.The report underscored that vulnerable road users including pedestrians, bicyclists and two or three-wheelers constitute 66% of all reported road traffic deaths in South-East Region.
v.The reported highlighted that globally, there were an estimated 1.19 million road traffic deaths in 2021compared to 1.25 million deaths in 2010, with decrease of 5% in the estimated global road traffic deaths during the period 2010-2021.
vi.The report noted that estimated road traffic death rates (deaths per 1lakh population) in the period 2010-2021 have reduced in Bhutan, India, Indonesia, Maldives, among others whereas they have increased in Bangladesh and Nepal.
Points to note:
i.According to WHO report, Bangladesh has the highest gap between the reported and estimated road traffic deaths among member states of the WHO SEARO.
- While, Thailand has significantly reduced the gap between reported and estimated road traffic deaths from 57% (in 2010) to 7% (in 2021) which reflects improved reporting and better data availability.
ii.As per the report, the estimated road traffic deaths per 1 lakh population remain high in nearly all countries of the South-East Asia region.
- Countries like: Nepal (28.2), Thailand (25.4), Myanmar (19.3), Bangladesh (18.6) and India (15.4), the highest estimated road deaths per 1 lakh population for the year 2021compared to the global rate of 15 road traffic deaths per lakh population.
Key Observations:
i.The report projected that 70% of the global population to live in urban areas by 2030,demand for public transport will surge.
ii.The report noted that WHO SEARO, amid rapid urbanization faces shared challenges like: increase in number of motorized two and three-wheelers, inadequate traffic injury data, poor pedestrian and cyclist infrastructure.
iii.The report has recommended that Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs) need to prioritize the safety of vulnerable road users such as: pedestrians, cyclists, and riders of two and three who are at higher risk.
iv.It has also suggested to strengthen trauma and emergency care system, enhance road safety data, strong leadership and promote collaboration among all stakeholders which are crucial for improving road safety.
About World Health Organisation (WHO):
Director General (DG)- Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Regional Director (South-East Asia)- Saima Wazed
Headquarters- Geneva, Switzerland
Established – 7th April 1948
