CHAPTER -1

INTRODUCTION :
Road safety is an issue of concern worldwide ,considering its magnitude and
gravity and the consequent negative impacts on the economy ,public health and the
general welfare of the People . Today , road traffic injuries are one of the leading
causes of deaths , disabilities and hospitalizations with severe socioeconomic costs,
across the world.

A road accident an event that occurs during the movement and with the
participation of a vehicle on a road in which people are killed or injured and
vehicles ,equipments or goods are damaged or any others material damage is
caused.

According to OECD(1994) , “ Road accidents means the number of persons

injured and deaths on public place or public road .”

According to National Health Portal(2015) , “A road accident is any injury due to

crashes originating from , terminating with or involving a vehicle partially or fully
on a public road .”

According to Rune (2006) “,Road accident is motor vehicle collision that occurs
when a vehicle collides with another vehicle , animal and any other stationary
obstruction such as a tree , pole or a building . Road Accident often results in
injury , death and property damaged”)

According to the data issued by the WHO , there were approx 1.3 million people
die each year as a result road traffic crashes . The road traffic injuries are the
leading cause of death for children and young adults aged 5-29 years. The WHO’s
World Report on Road Traffic injury Prevention lists Road Accidents as the third
leading contributor to the global burden of disease, up from ninth position in 1990.

Road traffic accidents is the leading cause of death by injury and tenth leading
cause of all deaths globally. The reports published by WHO stated that 1.3 million
people are killed in road accidents each year , and as many as 50 million are
injured. Road injuries affect mainly males (73% of deaths) and those between 15 to
44 years old. This burden is creating enormous economic hardship due to the loss
of family breadwinners.

Road accidents continue to be a leading cause of death , disabilities and

hospitalization in India also despite our commitment and efforts . India ranks first
in the number of road accident deaths across the 199 countries and accounts for
almost 11 % of the accident related deaths in the world.

As per the’ Road Accidents in India 2021’(report issued by ministry of transport

and highways) number of 4,12, 432 road accidents have been reported by States
and Union Territories during the calendar year 2021, claiming 1,53,972 lives and
causing injuries to 3,84,448 persons . The number of road accidents in 2021
increased by 12.6 %on an average compared to previous year 2020. A number of
4,12, 432 road accidents have been reported by States and Union Territories during
the calendar year 2021, claiming 1,53,972 lives and causing injuries to 3,84,448
persons . The number of road accidents in 2021 increased by 12.6 %on an average
compared to previous year 2020.

Road accident situation in the state of Punjab is also quite serious when viewed in
the national context and that of some other parameters. The various annual reports
of Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MRTH). entitled road accidents in
India are sufficient enough to understand the determining situation of road
accidents in the state of Punjab. A total of 4589 people died in different road
accidents; on an average 13 people lost their lives daily in various Road Accidents
in Punjab in the year 2021. ii. In 2021, an Increase of 17.7% in road accident
fatalities was observed in Punjab against the declining trend of the previous year
(2020).

1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM:

Road accident is a major problem in our country and in the world. Road accidents
have become very common nowadays. As more and more people are buying
automobiles , the incidence of road accidents are just increasing day by day
.People have also become more careless now. Not many people follow the traffic
rules . Especially in big cities , there are various modes of transports . Moreover,
the roads are becoming narrower and the cities have become more densily
populated.

In present situation everyone can notice this by just readings newspapers,

magazines, and viewing news on various TV channels. On basis also we can see
that people in our neighborhood have been affected by road accident and they are
die or injured on the road . The road accidents not only impact the vehicle riding
people but also affect the pedestrians . Actually , the pedestrians are more affected
on road accidents as compared to vehicle riders.

Road accident is one of the main reasons of death among youth because the young
boys and girls are not properly aware about the traffic rules and lose their lives due
to the lack of information about the traffic rules as well as the rash driving on the
roads . According to data published by Ministry of Road Transport and Highways ,
more number of deaths from the age group of 18 to 45 years old and most of the
young generation lost their lives in the road accidents. The study of Road Accident
is quite important in the present scenario because there are almost 1.5 million
deaths due to road traffic accidents . This happens due to the less awareness of the
people . This study focuses on spatio-temporal data on different road accidents and
it will help to analysic the problems and causes which are the main factors behind
the road accidents . This collected study will help to analyse the type of vehicles
being involved in accidents ? The study of road accident in the proper manner
helps to reduce the road accidents numbers and if lack or congestion on the road
infrastructure is the reason of accidents. This can help the government in providing
the suitable infrastructure of the roads which can reduce the number of accidents
on a particular road. The study of road accidents is important because with this, it
becomes easy to investigate the accidents.

1.2 OBJECTIVES OF THE ACCIDENT STUDIES :

The objectives of present study are :-

1. To analysis road infrastructure and number of vehicles.

2. Spatial analysis of road accidents.

3. Reduce/Control health burden due to road accidents.

4. To provide suggestions for road accident reduction.

1.3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY :

The present study deals with the districts as a unit . The 2015 and 2021 official
administration map is used as the study period. The study is primarily based on the
secondary data which is collected from the different sources . The data collected is on
road accidents , deaths and injuries, infrastructure of the roads , population structure of
the study area and causes of road accident r . The data of health burden due to the road
accident is also collected.

The statistical data is computed , tabulated and analyzed with the help of suitable
techniques.

This study is organized into following steps :

[Link] of area : The Malwa Region of Punjab state is selected as the study area.
Malwa region consists of 14 districts .

[Link] of data : The required data is collected by using secondary sources. The
secondary data is collected from many sources like articles, newspapers, government
agencies and organizations etc. Various websites is also considered for collection of
secondary data.

[Link] analysis and map preparation : Statistical tools like tables , pie diagrams ,
averages and percentages is used to analyze the collected data on different things like
number of road accidents, deaths , injuries etc.

1.4 STUDY AREA :

Malwa is the major natural and folk region of Punjab with a great future .It is situated
between river Sutlej in the north and west ,river Ghagghar in the south, Shiwalik hills
in the east and Pakistan to its west . Doaba and Majha lies on its north . Himachal
Pradesh and Haryana Border Malwa on the east, south-east and south and in the south-
west Rajasthan touches Malwa region. Malwa extends from 29°30´to 31°9´North
latitude and from 73°55´ to 76°55´East longitude. Malwa region resembles an east-
west extending irregular quadrangle . It is the largest region of Punjab spreading over
14 districts and about two –thirds (65.14%) area of Punjab. Its total area is 32806
square km which is 3.8 times larger than Majha and Doaba also. Out of 22 Districts ,
14 districts of Punjab is in Malwa region . The districts are Barnala , Bathinda ,
Faridkot , Fatehgarh Sahib , Fazilka , Ldhiana, Mansa , Moga ,Mohali , Muktsar Sahib
, Patiala ,Sangrur , Rupnagar , and Firozpur.

There is much development of mean of transportation in Malwa region. The Malwa

region has four National Highways and a number of State hIghways . National
Highway No. 1 passes through the region of Rajpura to Phillour .Except Ludhiana ,
Rupnagar , Fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala districts , all other districts have lower density
as compared to State average road density .

1.4 STUDY PERIOD :

The period of the study of Road Accidents is selected from 2015 to 2021 . This is the
five year time period of study of the Road Accident data because it reflects the latest
data and lasted information related study area and the topic. This timeframe allows for
a comprehensive analysis of the changes that may occurred in the subject matter over
the past five years.

1.6 SOURCE OF DATA :

The data that is used in the study of Road Accident is The Secondary data . the
secondary data is collected from different Articles, newspapers , Government
agencies and organizations , books etc . This Secondary data is provided a sufficient
detail and data related with the road accidents in India and the different regions of
Punjab .

The Road accident related data is collected from the Ministry of Transport and
Highways , the Survey of India , Punjab work Department etc. Many of the data
related to the location , and shape of the study area is taken from the published books
of different writers.

1.7 ORGANIZATION OF STUDY :

The present study is organized into following five chapters :

Chapter 1 : General Introduction

  Statement of the problem
 Objectives of the study
 Research methodology
 Study area
 Study period
 Organization of study

Chapter 2 : Road Infrastructure and population

 Road infrastructure in India

 Road infrastructure in Punjab
 Road infrastructure in Malwa region
 Population structure of Malwa region

Chapter 3 : Spatial analysis of road accidents in Malwa region

 Total road accidents in 2015

 Total road accidents in 2021
 Change in number of road accidents(2015 and 2021)
 Gender and age wise distribution of road accidents

Chapter 4 : Health burden due to road accidents

 Health burden due to road accidents in 2015

 Health burden due to road accidents in 2021
 District wise ranking 2021

Chapter 5 : Conclusion and statement

Location of Punjab on Map of India
 Study Area – Malwa Region