The total number of fatal accidents in the Nilgiris has increased by a whopping 51 per cent in 2023, as per records made available to The Hindu by the District Crime Records Bureau (DCRB). Activists say the increase could indicate that road widening along the district’s major highways is leading to more serious accidents and consequently, more fatalities among road users.
According to officials, both the number of fatal accidents as well as people who have died in the accidents witnessed a steep increase in 2023. While the number of fatal accidents increased from 40 in 2022 to 61 in 2023, the total number of fatalities rose a staggering 67 percent, from 45 persons in 2022 to 75 in 2023.
Police officials who spoke to The Hindu attributed the increase in deaths to the huge numbers of vehicles plying on the district’s major roads, increasing the risk of accidents and injuries. However, local activists point to the reduction in the number of non-fatal accidents, from 194 to 155 in 2023 as indicative of the fact that wider roads are leading to fewer accidents. However, the increase in speeds along the roads is actually leading to more deaths, working counterproductively to the exercise of widening the district’s major roads.
“The data provided by the police shows that total non-fatal accidents have reduced by 20 per cent, while the total number of accidents has also decreased slightly from 234 in 2022 to 215 in 2023. This indicates that wider roads are leading to fewer accidents in general, but that the subsequent increase in speeds could actually be leading to the deaths of more persons,” said an activist from the Nilgiris.
According to S. Manogaran, president of the Coonoor Consumer Protection Awareness Association, the increase in speeds along the district’s major highways due to road widening, the lack of action against private establishments encroaching upon roads and the lack of action against reckless drivers is leading to more deaths in road accidents in the Nilgiris.
“While policing needs to improve, road users should also be made aware of the perilous nature of the district’s roads. Signage indicating the number of people who have died from accidents can be put up along dangerous stretches of highway. Road designs also need to be altered to be safer for road users,” said Mr. Manogaran.
When contacted, Nilgiris District Superintendent of Police, P. Sundaravadivel, said that the Nilgiris district police are set to focus on better enforcement of traffic laws through booking more cases to serve as a deterrent against reckless driving along the Coonoor to Mettupalayam Road.
Mr. Sundaravadivelsaid that one bus accident along the stretch, where nine people were killed, contributed to the increase in road fatalities recorded in the Nilgiris this year. He also said that the police are going to launch an awareness campaign to sensitise drivers from outside the Nilgiris about safe driving techniques and also improve road design to reduce the speed of descending vehicles.
