Uttar Pradesh government launches road safety policy

LUCKNOW: UP government today launched a road safety policy, claiming to be the "first" such initiative in the country, which seeks to check occurrence of street accidents and resulting mortalities.

"UP is the first state in the country which has launched its road safety policy that deals with ways and means to check road accidents and shocking and painful deaths due to them", Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said while launching the scheme here.

He claimed that in the country, maximum deaths took place due to road accidents that needed to be checked.

"Under the policy, various departments like home, transport, health and public works department would coordinate to check mishaps and deaths due to them", he said.

Chief Secretary Alok Ranjan said that under the policy there would be provisions for committees to look into betterment of transport and road safety measures.

"While one committee will be headed by chief minister himself, the other committee would be under the chief secretary and one to be headed by the transport commissioner. Besides there would be district committees which would be headed by the concerned district magistrates", Ranjan said.

On the occasion, transport Minister Durga Prasad Yadav, Health Minister Ahmad Hasan and others also addressed the gathering.