The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has asked the states reporting high level of road accidents to focus more on road safety. Five states ? Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan ? accounted for over 50% of the country?s road deaths in 2012. The number of lives lost in road crashes in these states was over 70,000, out of the total 1.38 lakh deaths. The measures suggested by the Ministry include traffic rule enforcement, removing liquor vends along national highways, notifying speed limits, streamlining issuance of driving licences and to have a robust emergency rescue system to save lives. The need to fix defects in road design and proper and timely upkeep of roads was also pointed out. Roads should not be allowed for vehicular use until they were declared safe for use. Road safety experts have pushed for the formation of an autonomous nodal body for road safety, a proposal that has found favour with the World Health Organisation, and supported by the Ministry.
