Include road safety in school syllabus: Docs

Lucknow: Road safety should be part of the curriculum in schools, with practical knowledge and examinations, because the death of about 120,000 people every year reflects a national crisis. The number of youths involved in road accidents is very high and the figures are worrisome.
This information was given by Prof Rajesh Harshvardhan, head of the department of hospital administration, SGPGI, at a programme held for awareness of the road safety.Around 100 delegates attended the awareness programme held for the road safety.
Prof Harshvardhan stated, "Approximately 400 people lose their lives in road accidents every day and most of them are young people. It is necessary to include road safety as a subject in the curriculum along with practical examinations. Providing information about traffic to children from the beginning and ensuring their safety is the primary responsibility of parents." He highlighted the alarming statistics of road accidents in India and said, "India has the highest number of road accident deaths in the world, with thousands of people losing their lives annually due to non-compliance of traffic rules and lack of awareness about road safety. According to the ministry of road transport and highways, 120,000 people die in road accidents every year."
"Apex Trauma Centre (ATC) treats hundreds of road accident victims every year. Not only the accident victims but also their entire families suffer the consequences of these accidents. There should be awareness programmes at the primary level to reduce such fatal road accidents," said Prof Arun Kumar Srivastava, chief of Apex Trauma Centre.
Prof Avale Rupali Bhalchandra from the department of medicine at ATC, echoed, "People should adopt road safety information in their lives and inspire others to do the same."