Dhaka – At least 8,642 people were killed and 21,855 others injured in about 6,581 road accidents that occurred across Bangladesh in 2015.
Bangladesh Jatri Kollyan Samity (BJKS), a rights group working for welfare of the passengers, said this at a press conference at the National Press Club in the capital on Saturday.
Road accident monitoring cell of the organization compiled the data from published reports of 10 national dailies and six local dailies as well as programmes aired by a number of television channels.Briefing reporters, BJKS secretary general Md Mojammel Haque Chowdhury said around 30,497 people, including drivers and transport workers, become victims of various types of road accidents from January 1 to December 31 in 2015.
During the period, 8642 people were killed, while 21,855 others injured. Among the injured, 1,305 people lost their hand, leg or other parts of their bodies permanently, the BJKS secretary general said.
Mojammel Haoque Chowdhury said 56 percent accidents occurred on national and regional highways, 23 percent on streets of cities, while 21 percent mishaps occurred in rural or other roads.
He said, in 60 percent cases pedestrians were killed in various accidents that occurred in markets or kitchen markets areas of cities and villages due to lack of buss bay as well as following footpath grabbing.
On the other hand, 57 percent accidents occurred in the form of head-on collisions, 13 pc mishaps occurred as vehicles skipped off to roadside ditches, 13 pc occurred due to loss of control over the steering, while remaining 17 percent accidents occurred due to other reasons, the BJKS secretary general observed.
The BJKS’s road accident monitoring cell found that footpath grabbing, over taking, over speeding and overloading are the major reasons for road accidents.
Among others, joint secretary of Nirapad Sarak Chai Andolan Lion Gani Miah Babul was also present in the press conference. – News Desk
