As per available reports, road accidents occur due to multiple causes such as over speeding, use of mobile phone, drunken driving/consumption of alcohol and drug, driving on wrong side/ lane indiscipline, jumping red light, non-use of safety devices such as helmets and seat belts, vehicular condition, weather condition, road condition, fault of driver / cyclist/ pedestrian etc.
As per the data received from police department of all States/UTs, number of road accidents and fatalities due to traffic rule violation on National Highways (includes expressways) in the country during the calendar year 2019 to 2021 is given in the table below: –
| Traffic Rule Violation | No. of Accidents | No. of Fatalities | ||||
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | |
| Over speeding | 98294 | 85616 | 95785 | 36566 | 32873 | 40450 |
| Drunken driving/consumption of alcohol & drug | 5122 | 3416 | 2949 | 2376 | 1862 | 1352 |
| Driving wrong side/Lane indiscipline | 7076 | 6050 | 5568 | 2726 | 3099 | 2823 |
| Jumping red light | 984 | 919 | 555 | 266 | 476 | 222 |
| Use of Mobile phone | 3660 | 2697 | 1997 | 1585 | 1389 | 1040 |
| Others | 22055 | 16753 | 21971 | 10353 | 7971 | 10120 |
The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 contains provisions for penalties in case of dangerous driving. It was amended substantially by the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 to introduce penalties for new offences and enhanced penalties for existing offences.
This information was given by the Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
