Roads of Delhi claimed over 16,000 lives in last nine years

Abhay SinghNew Delhi: Over the last nine years, Delhi's roads have witnessed deaths of more than 16000 people who died in road accident, data from Delhi Police has revealed.

The police data, accessed by Millennium Post, stated that in 2009, as many as 2,325 persons died, while the number was 2,153 in 2010.

The year 2011 saw 2,110 deaths in road accidents, whereas 1,886 people died in 2012.

In 2013, 1,820 deaths from road accidents were reported, while 2014 and 2015 saw 1,671 and 1,622 deaths, respectively.

Last year, the number of casualties in road accident was 1,591, while this year has seen more than 1,500 deaths.

The data shows that roads in the national Capital witnessed more than 10,000 fatal accidents and more than 40,000 simple accidents.

Many factors have been attributed for these accidents, with the major one being drunken driving.

The Delhi Traffic Police has intensified punitive action against drivers who are caught driving while intoxicated.

Recently, the Southern Range Traffic prosecuted 234 persons for drunken driving.

The officers conducting the drive to catch drunk drivers were equipped with body cameras to record the errant drivers' behaviour.

Through its 'BarTalk' programme, a digital out-of-home outreach campaign, Delhi Police has roped in top restaurants, pubs, and bars in the city to promote its 'Do Not Drink and Drive' campaign and women's safety initiative 'Himmat'.

Over the years, the number of road accidents has decreased, with systematic analysis of accidents, increased police presence at intersections, special night patrolling and stern punitive action against drunk drivers being the driving factors.

Different types of accidents are reported in the city; in some cases two vehicles collide with each other, while in others drivers are found to be negligent.

In a recent case, a ride to an exam centre turned into a horrific accident, after four students were killed and four others sustained grievous injuries when the Honda City car they were travelling in skidded off the Punjabi Bagh flyover.

Police sources claimed that the car was being driven at a high speed. When the vehicle had reached the flyover, the driver lost control of the car and broke through the cemented divider, landing several feet below the flyover.

In another incident, which occurred in July, a nine-year-old girl died and two others, including her sister, were injured after a truck hit them in north west Delhi's Jahangirpuri.

Stunts on the road is another cause of road accidents, with a man receiving injuries after the BMW car he was driving crashed into the iron grill of a road divider in west Delhi earlier this month.

Police sources had said that a case had been registered in the matter.