Road accident in South East Asia region continues to be a leading cause of death in the age group of 15 to 29 years, mostly motorcyclists and other vulnerable road users. In 2013, as many as 316 000 people were killed in road crashes in the region. Nearly 80 per cent of all road traffic deaths are motorcycle riders in some countries.
In India 17 deaths and 55 road accidents occurred every hour in 2016 which is one of the highest in the world. Road accidents killed 150,785 people across India last year.
With less than three years left for reaching the 2020 targets of Decade for Action for Road Safety and SDG target of halving the number of road traffic deaths and injuries, accelerated action is needed.
In Arunachal, with construction of four-lane highway in state capital and improvement of overall road network in the state, the role of traffic police is also gradually increasing. The competent authority of the state Govt must organize massive traffic awareness campaign programmes across the state with involvement of civil society and like-minded people in order to minimize the road accidents.