There has been no respite from accidental deaths for God’s Own Country, despite strict enforcement of traffic rules. Though the number of accidents and deaths has come down slightly, the rate is still alarming.
According to statistics released by the Kerala Police on Friday, 35,215 road accidents occurred in the State last year and 4,258 persons had lost their lives. As many as 40,346 persons were injured, 25,281 grievously.
In 2012, the number of persons killed in road accidents was 4,286 and the total number of accidents was 36,174.
The highest number of deaths was reported from Thiruvananthapuram, 556, followed by Ernakulam with 496, and Thrissur, 441. The figures for other districts are Kollam, 439; Alappuzha, 394; Kozhikode, 367; Malappuram, 354; Palakkad, 347; Kottayam, 272; Kannur, 193; Pathanamthitta, 140; Kasaragod, 110; Idukki, 95; and Wayanad, 54.
The highest number of accidents occurred in Ernakulam with 5,558 followed by Thiruvananthapuram, 4,647. Thrissur came next with 3,820 accidents. The figures for the other districts are Alappuzha, 2,843; Kollam, 2,840; Malappuram, 2,653; Kozhikode, 2,644; Kottayam, 2,624; Palakkad, 2,110; Kannur, 1,867; Idukki, 897; Pathanamthitta, 140; Kasaragode, 110, and Wayanad, 590.
As many as 8,911 accidents had occurred on the National Highways of the State. While State highways accounted for 6,593 accidents, 19,711 accidents had taken place along other roads. On the National Highways, 1,227 accidents were fatal — 1,336 deaths. On the State highways, 885 persons were killed in 817 fatal accidents, and 2,037 persons were killed in 1,928 accidents on the other roads of the State. The statistics showed that 54,751 vehicles were involved in the accidents in 2013. Vehicles involved in the highest number of accidents were two-wheelers — 26,236, followed by cars — 10,344, and autorickshaws — 6,711. The figure for KSRTC buses is 1,332, private buses, 3523; and lorries, 1,967. Accidents involving two-wheelers accounted for the highest number of deaths — 1,289. Those involving private or mini buses resulted in 610 deaths and KSRTC buses, 194 deaths.
