Srinagar
In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, the Srinagar-Jammu Highway has seen over 8,000 road accidents and 1,750 resultant fatalities in the last one decade.
As per the data compiled by Traffic Police Department and District Police, Ramban, the highway has seen 8,128 road accidents resulting into 1,750 deaths and injuries to 12,131 persons between 2010 and 2020.
The treacherous stretch of the highway from Banihal to Chanderkote alone has seen 858 deaths in the accidents.
Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) IIOJ&K Traffic, T Namgyal attributed the highway accidents to the increasing volume of traffic and the rocky terrain.
However, Junaid Nazir, a road safety expert, said: “A lot of bad engineering and unnecessary barricades on the highway are the major reasons contributing to the accidents.”
He added that there are not enough super elevations on the curves which makes turns on the highway vulnerable.—KMS
