Cooperation sought for enhancing road safety

Kathmandu, Oct. 2: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs Narayan Kaji Shrestha has said all sides are expected to contribute equally to addressing the heart-wrenching situation caused by road accidents.     

Inaugurating the 'Road Safety and Traffic Awareness Week-2080-BS', a joint initiation of the Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police Office (KVTPO) and the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) amidst a programme here on Sunday, DPM Shrestha said road safety was not just the concern of traffic police. "It is equally the concern of drivers and others, as well."     

He urged everyone to take responsibility for ensuring safe travel and emphasised the need for collaborative efforts to alleviate the persistent issue of traffic congestion in the Kathmandu Valley.     

DPM Shrestha stressed the need for further systematising the traffic light system, stating that the government was thinking of coming up with an additional scheme for the motivation of traffic police.     

The DPM expressed worry about the significant human casualties and physical damages resulting from road accidents over the past decade. "The data about road casualties in the past 10 years is alarming."     

Similarly, addressing the inauguration programme, Inspector General of Police (IGP) Basanta Bahadur Kunwar stressed the need for stronger cooperation between the Nepal Police and relevant authorities to effectively manage the traffic system. He said, “Factors such as growing urbanisation, inadequate road infrastructure, increased traffic flow, human errors, environmental issues, and technical challenges contribute to the rising number of road accidents of late in the country.”     

Mentioning that the people would not get relief without the development of public transport in Kathmandu, senior artist Hari Bansha Acharya stressed the need for the government to invest in public transport for the convenience of general people. He lauded the traffic police for their good management of traffic despite narrow roads, disorderly parking and heavy traffic in the Valley.     

Kathmandu's Chief District Officer Jitendra Basnet said the traffic management has been chaotic due to the failure to designate a safe place for staging a protest. Calling for the concerned authorities to pay attention to constructing the international level road infrastructure, he said the role of traffic police is important in reducing road accidents and managing traffic.     

Similarly, Basanta Adhikari, chief administrative officer of KMC, informed that the KMC had set aside Rs. 340 million for the improvement of the transport sector in Kathmandu. Every person should pledge to make road safety effective and reduce road accidents, he said.     

Uddhav Prasad Rijal, director general of the Department of Transport Management, stressed the need to generate awareness among drivers and passengers to reduce traffic accidents. The Department was at work in coordination with the provincial and local governments to manage vehicles, he said.     

Likewise, Saroj Sitaula, senior vice president of the Federation of Nepalese National Transport Entrepreneurs, commended the role of traffic police in reducing traffic accidents.     

Traffic awareness and training for drivers, transport workers and passengers was a must to reduce road accidents, he added.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIGP) Poshraj Pokharel, who is also the chief of KVTPO, said it was not possible to manage traffic with the efforts of the traffic police alone, “Cooperation and responsible role of all concerned agencies was essential for road safety and traffic management.”