GADKARI BLAMES CIVIL ENGINEERS, CONSULTANTS, CONCESSIONAIRES AND POOR DPRS FOR RISINGH ROAD ACCIDENTS IN THE COUNTRY
New Delhi: Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has blamed the increasing road accidents and fatalities in India on poor civil engineers, consultants, concessionaires and substandard detailed project reports (DPRs).
In his address at a Two-day Global Road Infratech Summit & Expo (GRIS) being with the theme “Vision Zero: Sustainable Infratech and Policy for Safer Roads , Mr Nitin Gadkari said ” most of accidents happen in the country due to small civil mistakes and nobody is held accountable . Even small things like the road signages and marking system are very poor in the country , these can be copied from countries like Spain, Austria and Swizerland”.
Gadkari highlighted the urgent need for improved road safety measures and called upon the road construction industry to develop strategies to enhance road safety by adopting newer technologies and sustainable recyclable construction materials.
“India witnessed 480,000 road accidents, 180 ,000 deaths, and about 400,000 serious injuries. Out of these 1,40,000 accident deaths are in the age of 18-45 years of age mostly Two-wheeler riders an pedestrians .These accidents contribute \ to an economic loss of 3 % of GDP. “ Gadkari said.
He pointed out the dire quality of DPRs in the country, holding engineers largely responsible for the rise in road accidents due to poor planning and design. “This gives me a feeling that basically the engineers are responsible for road accidents. So, the main problem is road engineering and defective planning, and defective DPRs,” he said.
With road safety a top priority, the government aims to reduce accident rates by 50% by 2030, he said.
Gadkari urged the industry and government to collaborate on solutions to prevent
road accidents, emphasizing the importance of education in building safer infrastructure and promoting safer driving habits. He also highlighted the need for stronger law enforcement and responsive emergency medical services.
The Two-day Global Road Infratech Summit & Expo (GRIS) being organised in New Delhi on March 6-7, 2025 with the theme “Vision Zero: Sustainable Infratech and Policy for Safer Roads,”.
“GRIS-2025 being organised by the International Road Federation-India chapter (IRF-IC) is thoughtfully crafted to inspire innovation, showcase cutting-edge solutions from industry providers, foster knowledge exchange, and open valuable networking opportunities for experts and decision-makers from government bodies and private organisations. The summit through the conference cum expo mode, aims to deliver a holistic experience that educates, inspires, and drives progress in the industry by seamlessly blending the formats.” Said Mr K K Kapila, President Emeritus, Internatiobal Road Federation (IRF) a global road safety bbody working for better and safer roads worldwide.
“The summit with the theme “Vision Zero: Sustainable Infratech and Policy for Safer Roads” represents a holistic approach to road safety, combining the latest technological advancements with innovative practices to create safer roads for everyone. By prioritizing safety in every aspect of road design, construction, and management, this theme seeks to move towards a future where road accidents become a rarity, ultimately aiming for zero fatalities.” Said Mr Kapila
“The impressive road safety impact of this summit will be shared, including its implementation success in countries, and its life-saving potential as a template that can be adopted by any country to achieve safer roads and mobility for a sustainable future for all.” Added Mr Kapila
Some of the subjects that will be discussed at the summit will include Strengthening governing frameworks for safer infrastructure, integrating road safety into urban planning, traffic optimization with intelligent infrastructure, leveraging Intellegent Transport System technologies to enhance public transport and road safety.
Some of the speakers at the summit included Ms Susanna Zammataro, Director General, IRF, Geneva, Lt Gen Harpal Singh, President, IRF -Indi chapter and Akhilesh Srivastva , Vice President, IRF.
