PUNE: The number of deaths and injuries due to road accidents in the city has increased this year because of a combination of factors such as the relaxation of curbs, addition of highway stretches from merged villages and vehicles over speeding.
As many as 145 accident deaths were reported between January and August this year as against 143 deaths recorded in 2020. The city had recorded as many as 206 road accident deaths in 2019.
Deputy commissioner of police (traffic) Rahul Shrirame said the figures so far this year are high partly on account of the merger of the Lonikand and Loni Kalbhor police stations with the city police limits.
“A majority of the road fatalities occurred on the Pune-Solapur and Pune-Ahmednagar highways and the Katraj-Dehu Road bypass,” said Shrirame.
According to Shrirame, the city in the past eight months witnessed at least 140 accidents in which 145 motorists died.
“In some accidents, there were multiple deaths. A majority of the casualties were two-wheeler riders;as many as 90 people riding two-wheelers died,” said Shrirame.
“In the corresponding eight-month period last year, 95 persons were reported dead in accidents on the city roads,” said the police officer.
Referring to the busy Katraj-Dehu road bypass and the two major highway stretches, Shrirame said over speeding is an issue and thus the number of fatalities on these stretches is higher.
“Lonikand has reported 19 fatalities on the Pune-Ahmednagar highway while Loni Kalbhor reported 16 fatalities on the Pune-Solapur highway,” Shrirame said.
“Similarly, 30 people died on the Katraj-Dehu road bypass, especially in areas such as Bharati Vidyapeeth, Sinhagad road and Warje, while the Katraj-Kondhwa road has witnessed eight fatalities,” he said.
“Also, a section of the Pune-Ahmednagar Road from Yerawada to Kharadi has witnessed 13 fatalities,” he said.
“Sections of the Pune-Solapur highway and the Pune-Saswad highway in Hadapsar recorded a total of 15 fatalities,” he said.
According to the traffic police, the parts of the old city did not witness any major accidents.
The areas of Faraskhana, Khadak and Deccan did not witness any casualties. Similarly, were no fatal accidents in the areas of the Cantonment.
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