Government to launch road safety policy: Modi

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the government will soon implement the National Road Safety Policy and cashless treatment for road accident victims.

"The statistics on road accidents in our country are shocking. There is an accident every minute. And due to road accidents there is a death every four minutes," he said in his monthly 'Mann Ki Baat' radio address.

In view of this, the government would soon introduce a Road Transport and Safety Bill in parliament and work to implement the National Road Safety Policy and a Road Safety Action Plan, he said.

The government wants to introduce cashless treatment for accident victims, he added.

Accordingly, in cities like Gurgaon, Jaipur, Vadodara, Mumbai and Ranchi among others, cashless treatment facility would be initiated for road accident victims for the first 50 hours after a mishap, Modi said.

He said there would be a nation-wide toll free number 1033 to provide information on accidents across the country.

Young people aged between 15 and 25 years lose their lives in nearly one-third of all road accidents, Modi said, adding that parents should raise awareness among children about road safety.

(IANS)