Hours after 12 people were killed and 38 others injured after the bus travelling from Yavatmal to Mumbai collided head-on with a truck going to Pune from Nashik, and caught fire, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday instructed the administration to do a survey of black spots (sites where multiple accidents have taken place) in Nashik causing road accidents and undertake measures to avoid such mishaps in future.
Shinde, who visited the black spot where the accident took place, announced that an inquiry will be conducted. CM has asked the district collector, divisional commissioner and municipal commissioner to do a comprehensive survey and prepare a report on all such black spots in Nashik and take necessary measures.
CM said that the survey will be conducted for black spots in various parts of the state adding that a high-level meeting will be soon held to decide measures to be taken to curb such accidents in future.
Shinde’s announcement came days after the union minister of road transport and highways Nitin Gadkari on October 1 announced that a target had been set to reduce the number of accidents in the country and the resulting deaths by half by 2024 and for this ‘’black spots’’ were being removed by spending crores of rupees. The Centre has so far spent Rs 25,000 crore so far to remove black spots on highways.
Interestingly, the Centre in its recent report has clearly said that the record of states like Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh was not good and needs to improve in the reduction of road accidents. Shinde’s announcement in this context is important.
During the Maha Vikas Aghadi government, the former Transport Minister Anil Parab in January this year had ordered a review of 1324 black spots (accident prone sites) of which 628 were identified by the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, 381 by the state public work department and 315 by urban local bodies across Maharashtra. Parab had then said of the 1324 black spots where maximum accidents are reported, the state government has completed permanent road safety measures at 931 locations, while temporary measures have been completed at 359 locations.
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