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Rear Seat Belt Rule Takes Back Seat, State Ranked 7 | Hyderabad News
HYDERABAD: If former Tata Sons chairman Cyrus Mistry’s death in car accident failed to drive home the importance of wearing a seat belt, these statistics might.
As many as 565 people travelling in four-wheelers died across Telangana last year, for not wearing a seat belt.
Alarmingly, 56% of them were passengers and not drivers, shows the latest data on Road Accidents in India – 2021 released by the Union transport ministry.
So, while 244 people sitting behind the wheel, without a belt, died in road accidents in the state, the count of passengers’ lives lost was 321.
In fact, Telangana was among the top 10 states — it is seventh, just behind Jharkhand — that registered the highest number of such deaths.
The count of injuries too was high with 1,924 people being hurt in crashes — 67% (1,293) of them passengers and the remaining 631 drivers. While the 2021 numbers are lower than pre-Covid times, experts suggest more caution.
“There is a severe lack of enforcement when it comes to the seat belt rule. But it is wrong to put the onus on the police force alone if you see the population to traffic police ratio. The solution to this problem can be achieved only through education and training,” said Malcolm Dominic Wolfe, a road safety trainer and retired squadron leader of the IAF.
Nationally, 16,397 people were killed in road accidents were not wearing seat belts, of which 8,438 were drivers and 7,959 were passengers.
“Research shows that more than the driver, it is the passenger who is prone to higher impact if he or she does not wear a seat belt. A lot of vehicles these days have airbags for the driver and the co-passenger, but not passengers sitting in the rear seat. Hence, using the seat belt is more crucial for them,” said Dheerendra Samineni, founder of Safe Drive India.
Telangana also recorded 3,166 deaths in road accidents involving people travelling on two-wheelers. Of them, 2,351 were drivers and 815 were pillion riders.
As many as 565 people travelling in four-wheelers died across Telangana last year, for not wearing a seat belt.
Alarmingly, 56% of them were passengers and not drivers, shows the latest data on Road Accidents in India – 2021 released by the Union transport ministry.
So, while 244 people sitting behind the wheel, without a belt, died in road accidents in the state, the count of passengers’ lives lost was 321.
In fact, Telangana was among the top 10 states — it is seventh, just behind Jharkhand — that registered the highest number of such deaths.
The count of injuries too was high with 1,924 people being hurt in crashes — 67% (1,293) of them passengers and the remaining 631 drivers. While the 2021 numbers are lower than pre-Covid times, experts suggest more caution.
“There is a severe lack of enforcement when it comes to the seat belt rule. But it is wrong to put the onus on the police force alone if you see the population to traffic police ratio. The solution to this problem can be achieved only through education and training,” said Malcolm Dominic Wolfe, a road safety trainer and retired squadron leader of the IAF.
Nationally, 16,397 people were killed in road accidents were not wearing seat belts, of which 8,438 were drivers and 7,959 were passengers.
“Research shows that more than the driver, it is the passenger who is prone to higher impact if he or she does not wear a seat belt. A lot of vehicles these days have airbags for the driver and the co-passenger, but not passengers sitting in the rear seat. Hence, using the seat belt is more crucial for them,” said Dheerendra Samineni, founder of Safe Drive India.
Telangana also recorded 3,166 deaths in road accidents involving people travelling on two-wheelers. Of them, 2,351 were drivers and 815 were pillion riders.
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