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Journalism of Courage
With nearly one death in every two crashes, Uttar Pradesh had among the deadliest records for Indian states in terms of overall number of road accidents and deaths last year, according to a provisional report of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
While the overall number of road accidents and deaths in India will likely surpass figures for 2023, one positive factor is that nine states registered a decline in both accidents and fatalities in 2024, including Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab. Among the states, Kerala recorded the lowest accident severity, with one death for every 13 accidents.
Compiled by the ministry’s Transport Research Wing (TRW), the report indicates that 4.73 lakh road accidents and 1.70 lakh fatalities were recorded across 35 states and Union Territories (UTs) in 2024. However, data from West Bengal is still awaited.
In comparison, during 2023, India reported 4.80 lakh road accidents, which claimed 1.73 lakh lives. West Bengal alone accounted for 13,795 accidents and 6,027 fatalities that year. This implies that once West Bengal’s 2024 figures are incorporated, the national totals are likely to exceed those of 2023, continuing a year-on-year upward trend in road crashes and deaths. A temporary decline was observed during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021.
In terms of the source of the numbers, TRW collects accident data from the state police departments in formats provided by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) under the Asia-Pacific Road Accident Data (APRAD) base project. The TRW uses this data to publish the Road Accidents in India report. The latest issue is for the calendar year 2023, with provisional data for 2024.
Where some states fare better
Despite the overall numbers, some states showed improvements, too. An analysis of the data reveals that nine states/UTs have achieved a decrease in both reported road accidents and fatalities between 2023 and 2024. This dual reduction is a positive sign for road safety.
Among the larger states showing a downward trend in the numbers, Gujarat reduced its accident count from 16,349 in 2023 to 15,588 in 2024, and its fatalities dropped from 7,854 to 7,717. Similarly, Haryana recorded a decrease in accidents (10,463 to 9,806) and a reduction in fatalities (4,968 to 4,689). Punjab also saw 6,269 accidents and 4,829 fatalities in 2023, compared to 6,063 accidents and 4,759 fatalities in 2024.
The smaller states showing improvements on both metrics are Goa, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Manipur and Nagaland, and the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir. In particular, Nagaland’s accident count dropped significantly — from 303 in 2023 to 129 in 2024.
The states showing mixed performance
Several other states/UTs saw a decrease in one metric but an increase in another. For instance:
*Andhra Pradesh saw a marginal decrease in accidents (19,949 to 19,557) but an increase in fatalities (8,137 to 8,346) between 2023 and 2024.
*Similarly, Karnataka saw a decrease in accidents (43,440 to 43,062) but a slight increase in fatalities (12,321 to 12,390).
*Kerala saw an increase in accidents (48,091 to 48,789) but a decrease in fatalities (4,080 to 3,846).
*Tripura saw more or less the same number of accidents reported (577 to 578) but a decrease in fatalities (261 to 226).
*Delhi saw a decrease in accidents (5,834 to 5,657) but an increase in fatalities (1,457 to 1,551).
*The UT of Ladakh saw a decrease in accidents (289 to 264) but more fatalities (59 to 61).
In terms of overall numbers, Tamil Nadu maintained its top position for the seventh consecutive year in 2024 with 67,526 accidents, followed by Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, and Karnataka.
In terms of fatalities in accidents, Uttar Pradesh topped the chart with 24,118 deaths in 2024, followed by Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan.
The analysis of fatality data shows that among large states, UP recorded the highest accident-to-fatality ratio in 2024, with 52.37% of reported crashes resulting in deaths — on average, every second road accident results in a fatality. The figure slightly decreased from 53.11% in 2023.
While Gujarat recorded a reduction in accidents and fatalities in 2024 over 2023, its fatality percentage increased from 48.04% to 49.51%. Among the large states, Rajasthan ranks third in severity, at 47.47%.
Telangana saw the largest decrease in its fatality percentage, dropping from 33.44% in 2023 to 30.59% in 2024. Kerala reported the lowest severity and improved its fatality percentage from 8.48% in 2023 to 7.88% in 2024.
The big picture
Despite various initiatives launched to improve road safety and reduce fatalities, the data underscore a worrying trend — roads are increasingly more unsafe and accidents in India are on the rise.
According to the World Road Statistics by the International Road Federation, India continues to be the top country in terms of the total number of people killed due to road accidents, followed by China and the United States. Iran has the highest rate of persons killed per lakh population. Even when adjusting for population, countries such as Pakistan, Nigeria, Ethiopia and China have lower rates of fatalities per one lakh population than India.
Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari recently said that road accidents and fatalities are increasing owing to poor civil engineering and substandard detailed project reports (DPRs).
In his address at the Global Road Infratech Summit & Expo (GRIS) in March, he said, “The most important culprits are civil engineers. I do not blame everybody, but after 10 years of my experience, I have come to this conclusion. Culprit are those who are making DPRs. Because of small civil engineering mistakes, there are hundreds of deaths.”
