The Tamil Nadu police will soon install Speed Dome cameras along an 80-km stretch of National Highways between Chengalpet and Tindivanam. The accident-prone stretch will be brought under camera surveillance enabling the police to have live visuals of traffic flow round the clock.
The facility is being introduced in Kancheepuram and Villupuram districts that contribute to a majority of road accidents in the State.
Acting on a proposal initiated by the State Traffic Planning Cell (STPC), revenue officials have provided land and electricity connection to create the infrastructure.
The project includes installation of a Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) network, wireless radios and construction of a control room in Acharapakkam police station.
“The facility will become operational in a couple of months. Besides live monitoring of vehicular traffic, the network can detect stolen/escapee vehicles and alert the nearest police control room. However, the primary objective is to enhance road safety…,” Additional Director-General of Police (STPC) S. Rajendran told The Hindu on Friday.
Going by the data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Tamil Nadu, which has 3,850 km of National Highways and 7,223 km of State Highways, accounts for the largest number of fatalities due to road accidents in the country.
In 2012 alone, 15,072 road accidents were reported in which 16,175 people died and hundreds of others suffered grievous injuries. Some of the reasons cited for the accidents include drunken driving, over-speeding and ill-designed roads.
“Two-wheelers contribute to 70 per cent of fatal road accidents in the State. Non-compliance of the helmet rule causes head injuries, often resulting in the death of victims. On an average, there is a road accident every three minutes and three people are killed (in such accidents) every two hours in Tamil Nadu. With surveillance cameras, we can analyse the circumstances that lead to the accident and take remedial measures,” Mr. Rajendran said.
With an objective to minimise road accidents, the Government had devised a comprehensive road safety policy and allocated a sum of Rs. 65 crore in the current fiscal to all districts for implementing road safety measures.
“On the directions of the Chief Minister, we have embarked on a mission to preclude and mitigate road accidents,” he added.
