PANAJI:
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) slammed Chief Minister Pramod Sawant for claiming that 80 percent road mishaps in Goa are due to drunken driving saying the accident data of the police does not support the claim.
AAP Working President Valmiki Naik strongly criticised Sawant for the statement during the government’s Road Safety Week program.
Addressing a press conference Naik stated: “Goa Police collects detailed accident data. The CM should have consulted these statistics before making such bizarre claims. CM should answer how many accidents in Goa are due to his own government’s failures such as potholes, bad road engineering, and lack of proper lighting and signages."
The chief minister should be ashamed of making such a statement, Naik added.
Naik also ridiculed Sawant's suggestion to use public transport as a means to reduce accidents.
“Where is public transport in Goa? A report by the National Sample Survey Office reveals that Goa ranks second worst in public transport availability after Arunachal Pradesh. The BJP has been in power for 10 years, yet they have failed to improve public transport," Naik said.
He said, the State's car ownership rate is a whopping 45%, compared to the national average of just 7.5% because Goans have no other transport options.
Naik also said Goa should take a leaf from Punjab's book where the Bhagwant Mann Govt has managed to reduce traffic accident deaths by a whopping 45% by introducing a 'Sadak Suraksha Force'.
Naik shared that this road safety force has a fleet of 144 vehicles and has 1,600 personnel whose sole task is to monitor 4,000 kms of Punjab’s roads.
"Besides ensuring safe driving and deterring traffic violations, the SSF has been trained to reach accident sites within 6-8 minutes of a phone call, thus saving hundreds of lives since its inception just 10 months ago," he said.
AAP leader Cecille Rodrigues who was also present said: "Goa's road conditions are worsening day by day. Common men and women are suffering due to complete apathy of the govt.”
“If the CM is serious about saving lives, he should start road safety committees with the help of citizens to ensure that the traffic accident rates in Goa are brought under control,” she said.
