MARGAO
With the number of deaths due to road accidents pegged around 223 last year, KTC General Manager S L Ghate has called for preventive measures to avoid accidents, saying that negligence is the root cause of most accidents on the roads.
Speaking at an awareness programme on traffic road safety at the Margao KTC Bus Stand on the theme “Obey all road signs and traffic lights” on Thursday, Ghate stressed on the need to take precautions to reduce the accident rate. “The driver should not think that he is the king on the road. When a driver drives after consuming alcohol, he drives as if he is the king on the road. But, one should remember that the deceased may turn out a doctor, engineer or a professional, including a tile fitter or a mason. Death literally brings their families on the roads and also cause a loss to the State and the nation,” he said.
While insisting that negligence is the root cause of most road accidents, Ghate said drivers drive the vehicle as per their own judgement, without realising that the man crossing the road may be a blind or deaf person or an alcoholic.
Margao Traffic Cell in-charge, PI Gautam Salunke said that while many people died due to corona last year, around 223 persons perished in road accidents in the year 2020. Saying that around 2200 accidents were reported across the State on Goan roads, PI Salunke harped on road safety awareness and refresher programmes for the drivers to bring down the accident rate.
The KTC management honoured a driver Prabhakar Goankar, who has the unique distinction of driving the bus without any road accident in the last 30 years.
