A former public sector general insurance officer, Prakash Kumar Mohapatra relinquished his coveted job to serve people of the State. He was pained to see that the roads in the cities have turned into vicious death-traps as people have little civic sense and traffic sense. In order to invigorate and strengthen the ailing traffic system in the State, he formed an outfit in the name and style of Sankhadhwani Rasta Surakshya Samiti in 2008, of which he is the founder-secretary till today. He prescribes a mandatory skill development and awareness programme for young drivers to provide an antidote to the gruesome fatal road accidents that claim a whopping loss of human lives of 3,500 approximately per annum, which is more than the casualties figure of the Kargil war. In an interview to The Pioneer, Mohapatra who was with his band of volunteers working at AG traffic square, Bhubaneswar, spoke to Sugyan Choudhury on Sunday.
Being an insurance officer, how did you come to road safetyIJ
As I was working in a public sector general insurance company and as I was looking into the third party claims, under the legal department, the incidents of accidents overwhelmed me and shocked me a great deal. Many claims pertaining to road accidents are either repudiated or are brought under investigation basing on Dl (driving licence), fitness certificate, tax payment, etc. etc. looking into all these shortfalls, I decided to protect and defend the interest of drivers, and a special cover was developed for the same while I was in the company.
How was this cover beneficialIJ
It is for the first time that a policy was developed to protect the driver on road with medical extension. The driver community was benefitted instantly, if any injury occurred to them. The expenses are reimbursed through this cover.
What are your observations about the Governmental measures for preventing road accidentsIJ
The Governmental efforts for prevention of road accidents are not at all sufficiently premeditated. The Government agencies are not sufficiently devising ways and means to check reckless and wanton driving. Take for example, the Gailo-Deogarh bus tragedy, in which 27 people lost their lives owing to the carelessness of the driver, who did not even for a moment think that he was carrying the precious lives of so many people.
How could the issue of road safety be taken up seriously by the GovernmentIJ
The Hon’ble Supreme Court had asked the Justice Radhakrishna Committee to look into the matter. The committee’s observations are clear and its recommendations to the State Governments are that they resolve the issue of road safety on a long-term basis. But the Odisha Government has made a lukewarm response without taking up long-term measures. On the whole, the State Government has done little in this regard and should now be prepared to take up the issue vigorously.
Being a member of the Road Safety Council, what are your suggestions in this regardIJ
I should say that the State Government should work hand in hand with all those who are working in this sector through their NGOs without any bias or prejudice. The State Government should establish, without any further delay, a directorate for road safety. All the initiatives can be taken up and all measures taken can be monitored through this directorate.
What are the remedial measures you would suggest for an effective traffic systemIJ
I believe that prevention is always better than cure. I would suggest three ‘E’s, namely education, enforcement and enlightenment, for an effective traffic system. The youths who prefer driving as their profession should not only be educated but they should be inculcated with a sense of active awareness on road safety. The driver should have skill development programmes from time to time. They should be given Dl for a period of three years only, unlike the present system of 15 years, which, however, should be renewable after every three years. We have suggested the above methods to the Transport Commissioner and to the Minister of Transport, but the suggestions are gathering dusts in their officialdoms.
What are the road casualties in the StateIJ
The concerned Ministers have often pronounced the figure of casualties being 3,422 deaths annually. The injuries inflicted are four times more than that of the casualties. Property loss is around Rs1,000 crore per annum. All these losses including the loss of lives could be reduced through enforcement, engineering methods and education.
What could be the loss of lives over the last decadeIJ
The figure of loss of lives due to road accidents over the last decade can be put at about 45,000. Furthermore, the startling revelation is painfully shocking, since 90 per cent of the deceased in the road accidents belong to the age group of 20-35, the youth force who died probably due to a faulty road traffic system.
What special suggestions you would like to add on this issueIJ
It is painful to note that despite our repeated demands to the State Government and to the Centre, no full-fledged budgetary allocation has been made available in our State for road safety. Besides, enforcement squads should be made available on roads to monitor road crimes.