'Stringent laws needed to check road accidents'
The developing countries are experiencing an increase in road accidents and casualties. The situation is likely to worsen in the coming years unless the critical problem of epidemic nature is addressed with significant improvements in the relevant sectors, they said.
The Accident Research Centre (ARC), Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), organised the three-day international conference on 'Road Safety in Developing Countries' that began on the Buet campus in the city yesterday.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. Around 300 experts from home and abroad, including the USA, Canada, Sweden, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Nigeria and Thailand, are taking part in the conference.
Communications Minister Nazmul Huda, University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Prof Dr M Asaduzzaman, Vice Chancellor of Buet Prof Dr Md Alee Murtuza, Communications Secretary Md Shafiqul Islam, Unicef Representative Louis-George Arsenault and ARC Director Prof Md Mazharul Hoque spoke at the inaugural ceremony.
Communications Minister Nazmul Huda said there are laws regarding road transportation, but many people, including drivers, helpers, commuters and pedestrians, are not aware of them.
The laws are also not enforced properly, he added.
The government should enact stringent laws to prevent road accidents, the minister said, adding that training and awareness campaign are also needed.
ARC Director Prof Md Mazharul Hoque said there are 1.2 million deaths from road accidents each year, with about 85 percent of them occurring in the developing world.
For every death, there are far greater numbers of injuries -- four people with permanent disabilities, ten people requiring hospital admission and thirty people requiring emergency room treatment, he said.
"The developed countries have been successful in reducing both the number and the severity of road accidents and injuries through prioritised investments focusing on technical solutions as well as improvement in behavioural and organisational measurers, but developing countries like Bangladesh have been slower in devising and adopting such scientific methods," Prof Hoque observed.
Unicef Representative Louis-George Arsenault said road accident is a global issue as it kills a significant number of people, including children, all around the world everyday and many survivors become permanent disable.
There are economic, social and cultural reasons for road accidents and lack of awareness about road safety among the drivers, passengers and pedestrians contribute a great deal to the road accidents, he added.
Communications Secretary Md Shafiqul Islam said Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation has a plan to introduce a driving school in the country.