Manipur’s road accident fatality rate three times higher than national average: centre

Imphal, Oct 14: Manipur has recorded a significantly higher road accident fatality rate than the national average, raising serious concern over road safety in the state, additional chief secretary (Transport/TCI) Anurag Bajpai said on Monday.

Speaking at the One-Day State Level Workshop on Electronic Detailed Accident Report (eDAR), Cashless Treatment of Road Accident Victims Scheme 2025 and Compensation to Victims of Hit and Run Vehicles Accident Scheme at the Institute of Driver Training and Research Centre near Imphal, Bajpai said, “Over the past seven years, more than 3,000 road accidents have occurred, resulting in the loss of 834 lives.”

“Manipur’s rate is significantly higher at 29 per cent, indicating serious concern for road safety in the state while the national average mortality rate due to road accidents stands at 9.3 per cent,” he said.

Stating that the high mortality rate clearly indicates the urgent need for implementing this scheme in a comprehensive and effective manner, Bajpai said that as per reports of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, India recorded over 4.80 lakh road accidents in 2023.

He highlighted two significant digital initiatives that represent a major step forward in the development of our society – eDAR and the cashless treatment scheme.

Secretary (Science & Tech) Kengoo Zuningla, who is also the CEO, State Health Agency Manipur, and DIG Jogeshchandra Haobijam were also present during the workshop. Nongdren Khomba, resource person from NIC, delivered a presentation on the topic ‘Introduction to eDAR (iRAD) Project’, while district transport officer (Imphal West) Kh Sanjeev spoke on ‘Cashless Treatment under eDAR’.

Nodal Officer (State Health Agency) Rinsophy Chamroy spoke on ‘Roles of PMJAY empanelled hospitals and State Health Agency”, National Insurance Company Ltd senior divisional manager Naorem Ibomcha Singh spoke on ‘Fake motor accident claims’ and DTO Thoubal I Hemochandra spoke on ‘Compensation to victims under the Hit and Run Motor Accident Scheme’.

Correspondent