Bhubaneswar: The Commerce and Transport Department has intensified its efforts to reduce accidents and fatalities across the state, with focus on rural areas and high-risk districts.
A meeting was convened at Kharavela Bhavan, chaired by Principal Secretary Usha Padhee and attended by Transport Commissioner Amitabh Thakur, with representatives from IIT Madras.
Dr. Venkatesh Balasubramaniam, Head of the Center of Excellence for Road Safety at IIT-Madras, shared comprehensive insights on utilizing modern techniques and structured approaches to enhance road safety management.
The discussions highlighted the underlying causes of accidents, potential strategies to mitigate them, and methods to save lives in accident-prone areas. Special emphasis was placed on raising awareness among road users in Odisha. The Principal Secretary underscored the significance of timely execution and the measurable impact of all planned initiatives.
The meeting also explored data-driven solutions to address the issue of road accidents. While the state has already made notable progress, achieving greater success will require collaboration with national and international experts and organizations, added Padhee.
IIT Madras, with its strong reputation in road safety, is actively partnering with various states in data collection, analysis, and solution development. They will draft a comprehensive plan to effectively tackle road safety challenges in Odisha’s rural areas, with a special focus on mining regions.
Other key attendees included Additional Transport Commissioner Lal Mohan Sethy, Joint Transport Commissioners Pradeep Kumar Mohanty and Bikash Choudhury, Joint Director Tapan Kumar Mishra, Special Officer Bhramarbar Mohapatra, and representative of Center of Excellence for Road Safety, Atul Singh, all of whom contributed valuable perspectives during the discussions.
