‘Number of accidents in the city sees a slump’

Kolkata: Despite a significant rise in the number of vehicles in Kolkata, the number of accidents reduced in the city due to the relentless effort of the Kolkata Police.

According to a report, the number of vehicles registered in Kolkata increased by 4.78 lakh in the past five years. In 2017, the number of vehicles registered under the Public Vehicles department (PVD), Kolkata, Alipore, Kasba, Behala and Salt Lake was 1630440 with 834767 being two-wheelers. The number jumped to 2108718 in 2022. Also the number of two wheelers registered in 2022 was 1158697.

The number of fatal accidents has gone down to 185 in 2022. In 2017, the number was 318 in which 329 people were killed across the city. The figure gradually went down to 185 in 2021. Apart from death cases, the number of accidents leading to injuries reduced compared to 2017. In 2017, 1405 people were seriously injured in 1234 cases. Also 1154 persons suffered minor injuries in 981 accidents. Minor injuries have gone down to 638 in 567 accidents in 2022. Serious injuries also decreased significantly in 2022 with 1080 persons suffering critical injuries in 961 accidents.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had started the ‘Safe Drive Save Life’ (SDSL) campaign since 2016 which helped reduce the number of accidents as well as the number of victims of accidents. Every year, SDSL campaign is organised by both Kolkata and the state police to make people aware about the traffic rules and road safety.