Even a Tomato Ketchup Sachet can’t be made in the Country without an FSSAI license.
Authorities & Contractors can make, change, alter roads, flyovers, intersections and the related installations without any approval from any Central Safety Authority.
Time to learn a thing or two from the Ketchup Sachet to save Lives!
By Anuj Guglani CEO World Auto Forum
The recently notified Motor Vehicle Amendment Act has been in the news mostly for the following things :
1. The steep fines to reign in negligent drivers & users
2. The strictness over minors and impleading their parents and guardians for their offences.
3. The inclusion of Cab Aggregators to the ambit and regulate them lest they go the E Rickshaw way!
4. Protection to Good Samaritans
5. Law on Product Recalls
What was not in the news…
The almost Silent inclusion of the National Safety Board in an advisory role to the Govt under Section 215 B of the act.
We need an FSSAI Style Body for Road Safety
This National Safety Board and the Central Govt under the provisions Section 215B, Sub Sections C, D and H of the MVA Act 2019 CAN and SHOULD formulate an FSSAI Style Body. A Body like the SEBI, like the IRDA for Insurance. No Road Infra can be created, changed, added , deployed without the consent of this Body. For convenience, on the lines of FSSAI, lets call it RSAI – Road Safety Authority of India. The main objective here being alignment of the multiple agencies and players ( govt and Non govt ) to safe Road Design.
A Few Road Things we Curse or Laugh Upon every day :
A Few More Common Sights :
A weirdly dangerous intersection ridden with Blindspots.
A Road Verge appearing all of a Sudden or Broken Beginning of a Flyover in a badly lit area.
An Intersection without Pedestrian crossing or signal.
A Sudden flyover or an underpass without proper and timely Signboards what leads where.
Isn’t it basic that every School, Religious place of worship and Hospital should have a pedestrian crossing & Speed Breakers
This is where our RSAI aka the Safety Body shall fill in as a central body. It shall take a Bird’s eye view of safety and ensure harmonisation of multiple agencies. An Area where the involved multiple agencies have grossly and consistently failed!
Else its very convenient for authorities to continue to say and for media to publish that majority accidents happen due to Driver Error or Distracted Driving. How about a survey, how many times it was the Bad Road or Poor and distracting Road infra design which led to a Distracted Driver or Driver error!
Once the Safety Body kicks in , we can also have Aadhaar 2.0
What is Aadhaar 2.0 ?
Every Fixture on the road should have a simple unique code, geotagged to the Fixture’s Location. The unique code to be prominently displayed like Metro Pillar no.s at Delhi NCR. Examples of Fixtures : Bus Stop, Street Light, Traffic Signal, Road Sign, Ad Hoarding etc
Two Benefits :
1. Each Code linked to a unique Geo Location Coordinates. In an emergency, just tell the code prominently placed at the nearest Fixture to emergency Service vehicle and they can put it in their Hand Held device and simply Navigate. Precious time is not wasted in locating victim or Accident or hazard site. Additionally each emergency vehicle to have a dual direction video cam to serve a dual objective. First to ensure no fellow commuter blocks way and second to ensure Emergency service staff is alert, quick and efficient.
2. It becomes the Aadhar on the road, helps manage Govt assets better, effective utilisation of tax Payer’s Money
So lets convince the Central Govt for RSAI and Aadhaar 2.0 to prevent accidents and to reduce response time after an accident. We know lives get saved in the Golden hour after the mishap.
Lets come together and reduce the road fatalities by half asap … Not just because we have ratified a UN Treaty to do so, for our Indian Brothers and Sisters… Jai Hind
Come Lets take this Dialogue to Action at ALEN 2.0.
