Early Times Report
Jammu, Jan 22: Death continues to stalk the roads of Jammu and Kashmir, with a staggering 3,688 people killed in just 1,295 days as the Union Territory recorded over 20,000 road accidents since June 2022, official data revealed on Wednesday, sending shockwaves through the administration.
Shockingly, the most dangerous hours on J&K roads are between 3 pm and 9 pm, when rash driving and high-speed violations turn highways into death traps, accounting for nearly half of all accidents reported in 2025.
The grim figures came to light during a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo to review the implementation of Supreme Court-mandated road safety measures. Transport Secretary Avny Lavasa, in a detailed presentation, said that since the launch of the i-RAD portal in June 2022, as many as 20,135 accidents involving 32,819 people have been reported across the UT, leaving 3,688 dead and 29,131 injured, including grievous cases.
Officials revealed that major highways in Jammu, Kathua, Udhampur and Rajouri districts have emerged as the worst-hit zones, with accident clusters repeatedly reported on the same dangerous stretches.
Terming the situation “alarming”, the Chief Secretary called for urgent use of GIS-based mapping to identify accident black spots, saying technology must drive targeted engineering fixes and enforcement to prevent further loss of life.
“We need pinpoint interventions on vulnerable stretches instead of generic action plans,” Dulloo told officials, directing departments to prepare time-bound roadmaps for full compliance with Supreme Court dire Death continues to stalk the roads of Jammu and Kashmir, with a staggering 3,688 people killed in just 1,295 days.
Shockingly, the most dangerous hours on J&K roads are between 3 pm and 9 pm, when rash driving and high-speed violations turn highways into death traps.
Major highways in Jammu, Kathua, Udhampur and Rajouri districts have emerged as the worst-hit zones.
The Chief Secretary has called for urgent use of GIS-based mapping to identify accident black spots.
Cracking the whip on habitual violators, he ordered strict punitive action, including cancellation of driving licences and registration certificates, seizure of vehicles, and revocation of route permits for those repeatedly flouting traffic laws.
The Transport Department disclosed massive enforcement action, saying 40,197 challans were issued in 2024 and 52,543 in 2025, generating fines of Rs 10.15 crore and Rs 15.88 crore, respectively. In 2025 alone, authorities seized 1,528 vehicles, suspended 1,641 driving licences, blacklisted over 10,000 vehicles, cancelled 1,192 registrations and revoked 300 route permits.
IGP Traffic M. Suleman informed the meeting that under the Integrated Traffic Management System (ITMS) and Intelligent Light Traffic System (ILTS), traffic cameras in Jammu and Srinagar have led to massive e-challan enforcement — over 12.36 lakh in 2023, 15.03 lakh in 2024 and 14.92 lakh in 2025, with penalties touching a whopping Rs 145.12 crore in 2025 alone. He added that nearly 16,000 vehicles were seized last year for serious violations of the Motor Vehicles Act.
The meeting also reviewed the status of black spot removal, trauma care facilities along highways, the functioning of driving training institutes, inspection and certification centres, and district-level road safety audits.
Reiterating zero tolerance for negligence, the Chief Secretary said the government would push a multi-pronged strategy of strict enforcement, engineering corrections, technology-driven monitoring and public awareness to curb what is fast becoming a silent epidemic on J&K roads. |
