Srinagar: In Jammu and Kashmir, blood continues to be spilled, as the state recorded the highest number of fatalities in a decade last year. However, beyond the conflict that dominates headlines, something else entirely seems to be taking the lives of people, especially the youth of the valley.
According to recent data, the number of people killed in road accidents in the state is twice of the number of fatalities -- which includes civilians, security forces and militiant deaths -- caused by unrest in the state.
The state government data reveals that last year alone, 908 people were killed in 5,529 road accidents across the state till November. Another 7,250 were injured.
The data of previous years is even more alarming.
As per the records for the last eight years, on an average, 15 accidents take place every day. A person gets killed in an accident every seven hours while someone is left injured every hour.
A study conducted by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) in 2017 that examined cases from the year 1996 to 2016, Jammu and Kashmir tops the list in “deaths and disabilities caused by road accidents”.
The study also reveals that accidents and violence accounted for 41% of deaths of people in the age group of 15-39. Disease and illness accounted for the remaining percentage of deaths.
Deaths over the Decade
As per the government figures accessed by News18, in the last one decade, over ten thousand people have died in road accidents. The highest number of causalities were reported in the year 2012 at 1165.
In the last ten years, sixty thousand road accidents have taken place in the state and over eighty thousand people have suffered injuries. Most numbers of injured were reported in the year 2011.
Most of the road accidents take place in Jammu. As far as Kashmir is concerned, the district of Srinagar reported the maximum accidents.
In 2018, Jammu topped the list after the state witnessed 1130 accidents. This is followed by the district of Kathua, Udhampur and Samba. Surprisingly, more accidents take place in plain areas of the state. In the hilly areas, Rajouri and Ramban have reported maximum number of cases at 394 and 252, respectively.
In Kashmir region, after Srinagar, Baramulla and Anantnag districts have reported most cases of accidents at 223 and 214, respectively. The lowest number of road mishaps occurred in the Shopian district of South Kashmir.
A Bill or a Piece of Paper?
Alarmed by the growing incidents of road accidents and the unprecedented rise in fatality rates, the Jammu and Kashmir government last year introduced the Jammu and Kashmir Road Safety Council Act, 2018, that advocated the formation of a State Road Safety Council.
According to the bill, the proposed council will be responsible for ensuring road safety across the state and give advice to the state government regarding transport safety measures.
The council, headed by the Minister of Transport, is also supposed to be involved in charting safety policies, enforce road safety standards and conduct awareness programmes.
However, nothing ever really moved beyond the papers and no action has been taken ever since.
Lack of Healthcare
On the other end of the spectrum, a gaping hole in the availability of health care facilities in the state aggravates the problem.
The doctors in the valley’s hospitals believe that authorities have done very little to reduce deaths and disabilities caused by accidents.
In 2012, the government announced the establishment of 17 trauma centers along the highways to provide immediate intervention in case of road accidents. However, doctors say these trauma centers are poorly equipped and barely functional.
There is also a huge dearth of critical care ambulances in the state as only two dozen are available with state hospitals.
The author is a freelance journalist. All views are personal.
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