National highways, which constitute less than 2% of total road network in the country, witnessed 30% of total road accident deaths in year 2018.
The total loss incurred due to these fatal accidents on National Highways, according to an estimation, is coming close to 1% of the Gross Domestic Product of the country, which translates to ₹1,90,102 crore.
Stating this in a report submitted to the Bureau of Police Research Development (BPR&D), Telangana Road Safety Authority chairman and senior IPS officer T. Krishna Prasad mooted the idea of creating a dedicated enforcement agency for National and State Highways. By bringing down accidents on National Highways by 50% in five years, the agency can save five lakh crore rupees of the GDP, Mr. Prasad told the BPR&D by citing his National Highway Road Safety Plan.
To check accidents on NHHs, constitution of a dedicated and pan-India enforcement agency is the need of the hour, the report said.
The National Highway Road Safety Plan should comprise three basic elements of education and awareness, enforcement and emergency, the senior IPS officer explained in his report.
The agency with headquarters in Delhi should have 22 regional offices across the country, the plan proposed.
It would have 84 divisional offices, 160 group offices, 237 sub-group offices and 651 field offices.
Each of the last category would enforce the road safety plan covering 300 kms of National Highways.
The office establishment, manpower, vehicles and other expenditure for this agency would be ₹3,308 crore capital cost and ₹2,007 crore recurring cost annually, Mr. Krishna Prasad said in his report.
The TRSA chairman also reviewed the recent accident involving death of three persons after the car they were travelling in drowned in Kakatiya Canal near Thimmapur of Karimnagar.
He directed officials of all the districts to collect data of bridges and culverts and identify the black-spots of accidents to take remedial measures.
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