Who counts India's road accident deaths, why data see discrepancies, Pg17

Key Highlights:

• In 2024, road accidents in India led to approximately 1.77 lakh deaths according to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH).
• The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reported 1.75 lakh deaths in its 'Accidental deaths & suicide in India' report and 1.81 lakh deaths in its 'Crime in India' report for 2024.
• Data discrepancies persist despite the introduction of the Electronic Detailed Accident Report (e-DAR)/Integrated Road Accident Database (iRAD) system in 2021-22 to improve real-time data collection.

Detailed Insights:

• The primary source of road accident data is the police, who are usually the first responders, along with data from hospitals and state transport departments.
• The Transport Research Wing (TRW), a division of MoRTH, gathers accident data from state police using formats provided by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, but delays in data sharing often cause report delays.
• The NCRB collects data from State Crime Record Bureaus (SCRBs), which in turn receive data from District Crime Record Bureaus (DCRBs), which get their data from local police stations.
• Discrepancies arise due to varying levels of proactiveness among police departments in supplying data to MoRTH and the NCRB, as police are obligated to provide data to the Home Ministry under which the NCRB falls.
• The iRAD/eDAR system aims to reduce discrepancies by linking hospitals and enabling data matching between hospital and police records, but some states are still not reporting data accurately.
• Under-reporting of fatalities may occur if deaths happen more than 30 days after the accident and are not properly recorded by the police.
• Section 304-A of the Indian Penal Code, now section 106 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, is used to register crimes related to death by negligence due to accidents.

Key Concepts Involved:

• e-DAR/iRAD: A system to collect real-time, geotagged accident data entered by the police.
• NCRB: Agency that collects and publishes crime statistics, including accidental deaths.
• MoRTH: The ministry responsible for road transport and highways, also collects accident data.