Nagpur city is facing heavy traffic-jams at every corner, and now there’s more bad news. The city’s roads are now witnessing more number of deaths in road mishaps. Year 2024 saw 345 people getting killed in 327 road accidents. This is the highest number of accidents in the last five years. In 2019, the city witnessed 233 fatal accidents, in which 250 people were killed. In 2020, a total of 195 fatal accidents were reported which resulted in 213 deaths, during the COVID-19 lockdown year. In 2021, when the lockdown was partially lifted, the city saw 255 fatal accidents, in which 268 people lost their lives. In 2022, the number of fatal accidents surged to 294, with 310 deaths and the city recorded 294 fatal accidents which resulted in 308 fatalities in 2023. The statistics for the past five years shows a rising graph in fatal accidents: The spike in fatalities in 2024 represents 11 per cent increase over 2023 and 20 per cent rise from 2022. 

 

 Highest number of road accidents were caused by motorcycles and scooters, which accounted for 319 incidents. It shows that two-wheelers are more vulnerable in accidents compared to four-wheelers. With less protection, motorcyclists are at a much higher risk of severe injury or death, said a police official. Motorcycles don’t have the same safety features as four-wheelers, such as seat belts or airbags, he added. In the data, cars were involved in 509 accidents, while trucks and buses were involved in 192 and 125 accidents, respectively.

 

 

National highways in the Nagpur Police Commissionerate area accounted for 107 deaths. High-speed traffic and the long stretches of open roads, increase the risk of accidents. Other smaller roads saw 196 fatalities and 920 accidents in total. 

 

 

Majority of road accidents occurred between 4 pm and 8 pm in city. During this time, traffic volume is at its highest and roads are often crowded. With so many vehicles on road, the chances of accidents increase, said a police official. The nighttime driving (from 8 pm to 12 midnight) also saw an increase in accidents. 

 

 

Over-speeding and dangerous driving have resulted into increase in deaths and serious injuries on the city roads. According to statistics, there were 1,257 accidents in 2024 including 327 fatal accidents. In the fatal accidents, 292 were men and 53 were women. Of these fatal accidents, over-speeding was responsible for 97 deaths. And, dangerous driving was responsible for 109 deaths. Over-speeding also also contributed to a large number of injuries as it caused 99 serious injuries and 122 minor injuries. About 363 accidents were caused by dangerous driving behaviour, such as making sudden lane changes, not following traffic rules, or driving aggressively in crowded areas. These accidents resulted in 205 serious injuries. Drunk driving also remains a serious issue. In 2024, driving under the influence of liquor caused six fatalities and 29 serious injuries. This shows the continued risk posed by drivers who operate vehicles while intoxicated, despite the ongoing awareness campaigns aimed at reducing this dangerous practice.