‘Too speedy in this life, too early in the next,’ warned one of the posters exhibited at the NSS Higher Secondary School in Palkulangara where the valedictory function of the Road Safety Week organised by the National Transportation Planning and Research Centre (Natpac) was held on Friday.
Other posters illustrated precautionary steps that need to be taken while venturing out on to the road, irrespective of the mode of transport they choose.
These posters and booklets are part of an awareness campaign being carried out for school students by Natpac’s traffic safety division. During Friday’s event, high school students were urged to practice and insist on adherence to traffic rules to their families.
Chairman of the Thiruvananthapuram Development Authority (TRIDA) P.K. Venugopal spoke on helmet use and that there was a limit to how much the police could keep an eye out for offenders.
People would rather hold onto the helmet than wear them, he observed, telling students not to make any excuses to avoid wearing them.
The Natpac has been holding seminars for students, teachers, and school-vehicle drivers. They have also produced films for autorickshaw drivers — with the aim to convey the message of road safety to road users.
‘Campaign effective’Such educational materials are available in English and Malayalam.
The students at NSS School were given booklets on pedestrian safety, safe and responsible parking, and a teachers’ manual that describes activities that could be organised for students on a daily basis to build awareness.
Officials of Natpac said these seminars had proven to be effective as per their assessment of accident statistics after these outreach activities were initiated.
