According to the report released in the second week of May 2011 by the Road transport and Highway Ministry, on road accidents, 62 percent of road accidents are reported from rural areas of India. The report showed that rural areas had more fatalities than urban ones in 2009. Even in 2008, rural areas had a share of 59.4 percent road accidents. The report also stated that National Highways, which form 4 percent of India’s total road network, 45222 accidents occurred in 2009. Rural areas had more fatalities (61.7%) than urban pockets (38.3%) in 2009. The number of persons injured was also more in rural areas (60.2%) as compared to urban zones (39.8%). There was a similar trend in the previous year as well, where rural areas had a share of 59.4% road fatalities.
Governments have been more focused on improving the situation in cities and urban areas Hence, rural zones are being neglected. There is a need to educate commuters, and enforce stricter traffic rules in rural areas. National Highways (NHs), which constitute only 4% share of the country’s total road network, claimed 45,222 lives in 2009 as compared to 42,670 in 2008. Roads, other than NHs and state highways, that constitute the lion’s share of the country’s road network, claimed more lives at 46,345 in 2009.
However, in a disturbing indicator for India, where 60% of the total motorized vehicles is two-wheeler, the percentage of two-wheeler occupants killed in road accidents has remained almost unchanged. While in 2008, 21.8% of the total fatalities were two-wheeler riders and pillions, it rose marginally to 21.9% in 2009.