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Killer potholes claim 11,386 lives in 4 years

Accidents due to potholes are reported to have claimed 11,386 lives in India over the last four years.

According to the data compiled by the ministry of road transport and highways, between the years 2013 and 2016, the state of Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of pothole-related deaths (3,428) followed by Maharashtra (1,410), Madhya Pradesh (1,244), West Bengal (783), Bihar (659), Gujarat (597), Andhra Pradesh (497), Tamil Nadu (481), Rajasthan (440) and Punjab (367). Some states have a higher number of fatalities due to the traffic volume, length of road network and rate of rainfall.

The year wise annual fatality figures for the country are 2,607 in 2013, 3,039 in 2014, 3,416 in 2015 and 2,324 in 2016. The actual figures could be even more as most of the accidents go unreported and the police rarely record such cases as pothole-related incidents. Further, in many states, there is not even a provision to record accidents as pothole-related. According to a lawyer in the Madras High Court, the government agencies are liable to pay compensation to victims of accidents caused by potholes.

Potholes are formed due to the shoddy materials used and improper maintenance of roads. The life of a road gets further reduced due to water-logging, poor construction and frequent digging.

Source - Times of India

 
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