Consumers’ Legal Protection Forum organized Road Safety Workshop in Dibrugarh

A Correspondent

Dibrugarh: Consumers’ Legal Protection Forum, Assam and Consumer VOICE, New Delhi organized a stakeholder workshop on Friday in Dibrugarh.

The main objective of the workshop was to strengthen the road safety aspects of MVA 2019. Advocate Ajoy Hazarika, secretary of Consumers' Legal Protection Forum, in his welcome address said that recently the Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019 had been passed and got the assent of the President of India. This amendment aimed to make Indian roads safer, reduce corruption and use technology to overhaul the country’s transportation system. The next step was to adopt the CMVR in the State / UT agenda for immediate implementation to enhance road safety, he said.

Assam had taken lead in efforts to strengthen road safety and it was high time to have a consultation process with the stakeholders concerned to make the necessary legislative framework within the shortest possible time, he added.

Gitasri Chowdhury, Principal of Dibrugarh Government Girls HS & Multipurpose School, said, “The most effective way to reduce road crash deaths is through strengthening road safety laws. We appreciate and congratulate the government for giving a green signal to the most-awaited Motor Vehicles Act, 2019. According to the Road Transport and Highways Ministry, half a million accidents are reported in India every year, in which 150,000 people lose their lives. The amendment act will help to reduce road fatalities and injuries.”

Debojit Dhadhara, Traffic Inspector, Sadar Thana, Dibrugarh, said, “The transport department is working on road safety in Assam to make state roads safer. We were following the Central Government’s MVA 1988 and we also have Assam Motor Vehicles Rules, 2003 which also includes the main risk factors of road safety. We will follow and include the new amended rules by MVA 2019 to make stringent enforcements.”

In her presentation, Darshana Saikia of Bosco Institute, Jorhat, said that in the last six months itself, in Assam around 2,359 accidents occurred in which 1,980 people were injured and 928 lost their lives. “It is time to incorporate the new rules amended in Motor Vehicles Act, 2019 to make police enforcement drives more effective to prevent casualties,” she said.

Nizamuddin Borbhuyan, secretary of Dibrugarh Three-Wheeler Association, said that over 50 percent of road deaths in recent years had been in the age group of 14-35 years which was the prime productive age group. These were caused because of high speed, breaking traffic signals, not wearing helmets/seat belts, drink driving among other causes. These can be effectively stopped by enforcing the new MVA rules.

Participants from the various local organizations spoke on the next steps to enforce amended laws and the best practices to enhance road safety beyond just law enforcement in the panel discussion. The programme was largely attended by the district administration, Transport and Traffic Police officials, students, media, CSOs and activists working on road safety and road accident victims.

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