83% deaths due to not wearing seat-belts, UP tops the chart with most helmetless-rider deaths at 6,445

New Delhi. According to a new report issued by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), a total of 412,432 road accidents occurred in the calendar year 2021, in which 153,972 people lost their lives, while 384,448 people were injured.

Among the states, Tamil Nadu recorded the highest number of road accidents on national highways in 2021, while Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of fatalities in road accidents.

Among the two-wheeler accidents, the highest number of deaths due to not wearing helmets was recorded in Uttar Pradesh with 6,445 cases, followed by Tamil Nadu with 5,888 cases and Maharashtra with 4,966 cases.

Nation wide 16,397 deaths as a result of not wearing seat belts

According to the report, in 2021, a total of 16,397 people were killed in road accidents due to not wearing seat belts, of which 8,438 were drivers and the remaining 7,959 were passengers. The report also stated that during 2021, a total of 46,593 people were killed in road accidents due to not wearing helmets, of which 32,877 were drivers and 13,716 were passengers.

Report also states, during 2021, 93,763 people suffered injuries due to not wearing helmets and 39,231 people suffered injuries due to not wearing seat belts.

Not using safety equipment such as helmets and seat belts does not prevent accidents from occurring, but they are important in reducing the fatalities and severities of road accidents. Ignoring some exceptions, helmet is mandatory for all motorcyclists on two-wheelers.

Decrease in accidents compared to 2019

The report titled "Road Accidents in India-2021" states that there has been a decrease in accidents compared to 2019 due to the efforts of traffic signals. This report is based on data/information collected from state/UT police departments that are compiled on a calendar year basis.

There is a 8.1% decrease in road accidents and a 14.8% decrease in the number of injuries compared to 2019. However, there was a 1.9% increase in the mortality rate in road accidents compared to the same period in 2019.

According to the report, there was a decrease of 12.6% in the number of road accidents compared to the previous year 2020. Similarly, there was an increase of 16.9% in the number of deaths and 10.39% in the number of injuries caused by road accidents.

The report also states that on average, there are 1130 accidents and 422 deaths in the country every day, or 47 accidents and 18 deaths every hour.

According to the report, there was a decrease in the number of accidents, deaths, and injuries in the country in 2020. This was particularly seen during March-April 2020 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the nationwide strict lockdown implemented at that time, which gradually eased with the easing and lifting of lockdown measures.

Decrease in accidents during 2020

According to the report, there was a decrease in the number of accidents, deaths, and injuries in the country in 2020. This was particularly seen during March-April 2020 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the nationwide strict lockdown implemented at that time, which gradually eased with the easing and lifting of lockdown measures.

As per the report, the number of young adults involved in the accidents in the 18-45 age group was 67.6% during 2021, while people in the working age group of 18-60 years were responsible for a total of 84.5% of road accidents.

During 2021, of the 4,12,432 accidents recorded in the country, 31.2% (1,28,825) occurred on national highways (NH) including expressways, 23.4% (96,382) occurred on state highways (SH), and the remaining 45.4% (1,87,225) occurred on other roads.

The report states that of the 1,42,163 fatal accidents in 2021, 35.8% (50,953) occurred on national highways, 24.6% (34,946) occurred on state highways, and 39.6% (56,264) occurred on other roads.

According to a report by MoRTH (Ministry of Road Transport and Highways), the main cause of these road accidents was overspeeding, followed by wrong lane/side driving, use of mobile phones while driving, driving under the influence of alcohols or drugs and other causes involve such as traffic signal jumping.