To counter the trend of rising road fatalities across India, union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday announced the ongoing pilot initiative to provide cashless treatment up to Rs 1.5 lakh for seven days for all crash survivors will be expanded to all states by March 2025.
He also announced that the ministry will make a mandatory introduction of three new tech-based systems for new buses and trucks including an audio warning system to alert drivers when they are falling asleep on the wheel.
He cited a ministry report stating 33,000 people were killed by trucks impacting vehicle in 2022. The minister was speaking after the ministry held workshops and meetings with transport secretaries and commissioners of all states for two days.
On the cashless insurance scheme, Gadkari said so far, 6,840 people have benefitted from this pilot scheme active in states such as Assam, Chandigarh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Puducherry, and Haryana.
“We hope once the scheme is launched, we will be able to help save 50,000 lives by ensuring treatment in the golden hour,” he said.
Ministry officials said the final scheme will be drawn up by incorporating all the nuances and understanding of the pilots from all such states.
Speaking late last year, the minister had said road fatalities in 2023 increased to 1.72 lakh across India marking a growth of 4.2% from 2022.
The other two tech interventions for heavy vehicles are electronic stability control and automatic emergency braking system, which will be activated after detecting too much or too little steering control, an official explained.
Gadkari said the ministry is also exploring an Aadhaar-based or other tech-based system to ensure that drivers cannot operate more than eight hours a day for commercial vehicles.
The minister also announced that the reward for good samaritans for saving crash victims which is currently Rs 5,000 will also be increased.He also said that he has spoken with the ministry of civil aviation to enable ease of operation of air ambulances by readying helipads on roadside amenities of highways and ensure some hospitals to have provisions for accommodating air ambulances.
Gadkari said India faced a huge shortage of skilled drivers. According to the ministry estimates, the country lacked 22 lakh skilled drivers, and 75% of transport businesses were impacted by shortage of skilled drivers. For every 100 trucks, there were only 75 drivers available. He said a total of 30,000 deaths were caused by vehicles driven by unauthorised drivers.
As a remedy, he said, the ministry will open 1,250 new driving learning centres with capital investment from centre.
An official at the ministry also said the draft for Bharat Stage 7 (BS7) emission norms will be issued by the end of this year with stakeholder consultations set to begin by mid-2025.
The minister also mentioned that the government will also bring out standards for E-rickshaws to ensure their safety and longevity to ensure that operators are not at a loss. To promote circular economy in the vehicle, scrappage policy, the government is working on making a carbon credit-like system, another official said.
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