Bagmati reports 1,530 deaths in road accidents in four and half years

Published On: January 19, 2024 10:30 AM NPT By: Basanta Dhungana

CHITWAN, Jan 18: A 30-year-old youth died when a Bolero jeep and a scooter collided in Khairahani, East Chitwan, on Thursday. In the last four and a half years, as many as 1,530 people have lost their lives in 5,213 vehicle accidents in Bagmati Province. In the last six months, 128 people died in road accidents, according to Bagmati Province Traffic Police Office, Ramnagar.

Between 250 and 400 people die every year due to road accidents in the 10 districts of Bagmati Province. According to the traffic police data of Bagmati Province, 252 people died and 1,750 were injured in 1,110 traffic accidents in the last fiscal year.

Traffic police has the data of 413 deaths in road accidents in Bagmati Province in fiscal year 2078/79 BS, 335 in 2077/78 BS, and 444 in 2076/77 BS.

The number of men is higher than that of women in these road accidents. According to the police, 78 percent of those who die in road accidents are men. Among the 1,530 people who died in road accidents in the last four and a half years, 1,187 were men. Only 365 women died in road accidents during this period.

Most of the deaths involve young people. About 8,690 people were injured in road accidents during this period. According to police data, 3,417 people were seriously injured. According to the road accident statistics of this period, on average four vehicles were involved in accidents every day.

In the last four years, the highest number of motorcycle accidents has been seen. During this period, 3,761 motorcycle accidents occurred. Around 128 people have died in road accidents in six months of the current fiscal year. Of which 58 people had motorcycle accidents. Similarly, 12 people lost their lives in bus accidents in the last six months.

Among the 10 districts of Bagmati Province, Chitwan has the highest number of road accidents and deaths. In four and a half years, the number of deaths in accidents in Chitwan is 487. Surya Subedi, Police Inspector of the District Traffic Police Office, Chitwan, said that due to the increase in population and vehicles in Chitwan, the number of accidents and deaths is high.

Bagmati Province Traffic Police Office, Ramnagar, does not include jurisdiction of all three districts of the Kathmandu Valley. Khadak Bahadur Khatri, head of the provincial traffic office, said that Chitwan has the highest number of accidents after Kathmandu in Bagmati Province.

More accidents occurred in Makwanpur, Dhading, Sindhuli, and Kavre districts. There are 915 kilometers of highways in the 10 districts of Bagmati Province. He said that only 4,500 traffic police are deployed in the highway area.

He shared that there is a problem in reducing traffic accidents due to the lack of manpower. “High speed, negligence of the driver, problems with the vehicle, and road infrastructure are the main causes of accidents,” he said.