Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla while speaking during the Road Safety Award Ceremony organised at Police Headquarters (PHQ) here today stated that Road safety was not just a matter of rules and regulations but also requires strict enforcement of these rules besides collective responsibility of every individual, community, and institutions and fostering cooperation during the road mishaps.
He emphasised the need to make the people aware about the road safety measures. He also lauded the initiatives of the police department to honour the citizens who contribute towards road safety adding that this will also inspire others to come forward and create awareness amongst the masses.
“As Himachal being a hilly State, faces more challenges as regard to road safety measures. However, our resolve is to overcome these challenges through proactive measures, education and innovative strategies and we are striving to create a culture of safety on our roads”, said the governor.
He said that there were nearly six accidents and two deaths every 24 hours. It was also important to make the people aware to follow the traffic rules. However the number of vehicles were continuously increasing and on an average 450 vehicles were being registered every day, he said.
The Governor said that due to better road connectivity in the State, the tourism surge has been remarkable, particularly during the weekends and the peak tourist season. As per the data available, on an average around 10,000 vehicles enter the State on weekends in tourist season, he said.
Shri Shukla said that Himachal Pradesh Police, Transport Department, Public Works Department and other allied departments were jointly taking effective measures to identify the black spots which contribute a lot in reducing the road mishaps. .
He said that due to collective efforts, a significant reduction in road traffic accidents, deaths and injuries has been observed during the year 2023 as compared to 2022. A total of 2253 accidents, 889 deaths and 3304 injuries were recorded in 2023 while 2597 accidents, 1032 deaths and 4063 injuries were recorded in the year 2022.
In comparison to the year 2022, there has been a 13 percent reduction in accidents, 14 percent reduction in deaths and 18 percent reduction in injuries in the State occurred in the year 2023.While congratulating the recipients of the Road Safety Awards, the Governor said that their unwavering commitment towards ensuring the safety of citizens is truly commendable.
Earlier, the Governor honoured the police personnel, officials of the Public Works and Transport Department, National Highway Authority of India and people associated with the media for their significant contribution in road safety. The Governor also released a song on Road Safety prepared by the Police Department.
Earlier, Sanjay Kundu, Director General of Police welcomed the Governor and honoured him. He said that for the last few years, he has launched a special campaign to reduce road accidents in the State and has taken effective measures in this direction. Identifying black spots has reduced accidents he said adding that the police department was adopting modern facilities and tools, making people aware about road safety.
He said that the department was also soughing co-operation from the people and other concerned departments and soon decline in accidents would be seen. On the occasion, Deputy Inspector General of Police, Gurdev Chand Sharma made a presentation on road accidents in Himachal Pradesh.
Additional Director General of Police, Law and Order Abhishek Trivedi presented a vote of thanks. Additional Director General of Police, Home Guard & Civil Defence Rakesh Aggarwal, senior officers of Police, Public Works and Transport Departments and other prominent people were also present on the occasion.