Malda: About 52 accident-prone spots identified

Malda: To curb road accidents, the district administration and the police have pinpointed 52 black spots highly vulnerable to accidents. Speed breakers or signages will mark these points soon.

A budget of Rs 1 crore 15 lakh has been estimated for the work and the requisition for the fund to be allocated has been sent to the concerned ministry.

Nitin Singhania, District Magistrate Malda, said: “We have identified several places that are accident-prone. The data will be shared with the PWD office.”

‘Safe Drive Save Life’ programme was launched in the state a few years ago at the behest of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to reduce accidents.

This initiative is also a part of the programme. A slight increase in accidents was noticed in Malda though the mortality rate due to accidents came down by 10 per cent.

Accidents have increased by about 5 per cent in Malda in the last one year.

The district magistrate formed a technical committee with administrative and police officials who identified these 52 points on the roads maintained by the Public Works Department.

Installation of various accident preventing mechanisms will be put up at these spots. Regular road safety meetings are held with various departments to follow the guidelines of Safe Drive Save Life.

The survey also revealed that the roads of small villages have been illegally connected with the national highways in various areas due to

which the risk of accidents

has increased.