India aims to have zero road fatalities by 2030: Nitin Gadkari

India is working to achieve zero road accident fatalities by 2030, said Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday.

Addressing the Indo-Australian Chamber of Commerce and Womennovator on Trade Investment and collaborations in Road infrastructure, the minister said, under the Indian Road Safety Assessment Programme 21,000 km roads have been assessed and about 3,000 km road length is under technological upgradation.

He said better road engineering and increased public awareness has brought about improvement. It is estimated that these upgradation programmes will bring about a 50% reduction in road accidents.

"Our objective is to set out to achieve zero road fatalities by 2030," he said.

The ministry has taken a lot of initiatives to reduce road accidents. The World Bank and ADB have committed Rs 7,000 crore each for this campaign, Gadkari said.

He said by social awareness and education, improving emergency services, pressing for medical insurance, providing more hospitals, etc the country is inching closer to achieving its road safety targets.

Referring to the Motor Vehicle Act 2019, he said it was comprehensive legislation on all aspects of the transport sector in India.

India reported the world's highest road accidents in 2018 with 4.67 lakh accidents claiming 1,51,417 lives. Human errors, road environment and poor condition of roads were the main reasons for accidents.