The Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has instituted a team of engineers from the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi to study the serious road crashes on the 200-km Jaipur-Gurgaon highway, which saw close to 3,000 road accidents in 2011.
On Monday, MoRTH Minister Oscar Fernandes flagged off a crash investigation vehicle, deployed by the National Automotive Testing research and Development Infrastructure Project (NATRIP), for scientific investigation of serious road accidents on this stretch by a team headed by IIT Professor Anoop Chawla.
“The idea was first conceived under a project sanctioned by Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises in association with NATRIP. The data that we finally get from study will be further used for enhancing mechanical safety of vehicles, improving road geometry and designing driving training courses,” said Fernandes, who also launched the pilot project for cashless treatment of accident victims on the stretch, where victims will receive a maximum amount of Rs 30,000 for free treatment.
“It is extremely essential to establish a safe environment system to reduce road crashes. Before that, it is essential to track and study the vehicle crashes happening on the road,” said Vijay Chhibber, secretary, MoRTH.
“By doing crash reconstruction and an up-close study, these IIT engineers will try and analyze the causes of accident occurrence, and the mechanism of vehicle damage as well as human injury. This will help them propose safer designs to vehicle manufacturers, improve safety devices on vehicles, and also give us ideas to improve road conditions,” he said.
According to officials, this study will also help estimate the collision sequences, establish parameters that best fit the damaged vehicles, data found at the scene as well as record witness statements and depositions. “The crash data collection and reconstruction by the IIT engineers will be used to improve vehicle crashworthiness and improve safety of road users,” said another senior official from MoRTH.
The Minister also launched a toll-free number 1033 to report accidents across the country. Further, he announced the setting up of a 24X7 call centre to receive information about accidents and deploy the nearest ambulance by tracking through GPS device. “The development of the National Ambulance Code and cashless treatment of road accident victims would make a major impact on the road safety scenario of the country,” said Fernandes.
He expressed concern over the high incidence of road accidents and resultant fatalities on the stretch.