DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

The Haryana Fund Management Committee (FMC) on road safety, at a meeting held here on Monday, approved a budget of Rs 74.5 crore for the year 2025-26. The allocation aims to reduce road accident fatalities and enhance emergency response systems across the state. The eighth meeting of the FMC on road safety was chaired by Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi, according to an official statement.

A sum of 17.50 crore has been allocated for the Health Department for the purchase of around 50 Basic Life Support ambulances while Rs 19 crore has been allocated to the Police Department to establish CCTV-based city surveillance systems in 19 districts. Additionally, Rs 10 crore has been sanctioned for District Road Safety Committees (DRSCs) to carry out safety activities. As part of its commitment to ensure safe travel for all road users, the Haryana government has been actively implementing the Haryana Road Safety Policy, 2016, the statement said.

It added that the policy focuses on the effective execution of the four "Es" -- Enforcement, Engineering (Roads and Vehicles), Education, and Emergency Care.

These efforts have contributed to a consistent decline in road accidents and fatalities across the state.

In 2022, Haryana recorded 11,105 accidents and 5,596 deaths. In 2023, the figures stood at 10,438 accidents and 5,195 deaths, followed by 9,759 accidents and 4,828 deaths in 2024. In 2025, up to May 25, the numbers have further decreased to 6,770 accidents and 1,942 deaths - indicating the positive impact of sustained road safety initiatives, it said.

Secretary, Transport Department, Dusmanta Kumar Behera said that the state government has also adopted the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways' (MoRTH) Cashless Treatment Scheme, 2025, which provides free treatment of up to Rs 1.5 lakh per accident victim for a period of seven days from the date of the incident.

Commissioner and Secretary, Urban Local Bodies, Vikas Gupta, Commissioner and Secretary, Transport Department, T L Satyaprakash, Secretary, Home Department, Geeta Bharti, and senior officers of various departments were present

in the meeting.

(editor@dailyworld.in)