Assam records lowest number of road deaths in 2014

GUWAHATI: Assam has recorded the lowest number of 43 deaths caused by potholes, speed breakers and humps on roads among all the states in 2014.

The figure was given out by Road Accident Report 2014, published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

Improvement in surface communication, road safety measures and streamlining of traffic management was behind the steep fall in the number of fatalities on roads, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said in a statement.

"The Report has established the fact that the state's roads are in better condition compared to big states.

"Our emphasis has been all along on building the roads infrastructure as the roads constitute the lifeline of the state and help in its economic transformation," Gogoi said.

Assam government has taken up a slew of initiatives to build a new network of roads besides repairing and maintenance of the existing roads, including bridges, he said.

Gogoi said the state government has urged the Centre to construct new roads and carry out repair work from time to time to avert road mishaps.

Stating that the state PWD has also been directed to keep roads and bridges in good shape to ensure smooth flow of passengers and goods, Gogoi lauded it for its work which has resulted in remarkable improvement in road communication network during the past 14 years.

According to the report, states with a high number of casualties on roads are Karnataka (970), Madhya Pradesh (915), Bihar (867), Tamil Nadu (636), West Bengal (375), Maharashtra (368), Gujarat (280) and Andhra Pradesh (216).