Danger on the highway: Safety lapses flagged on NH 66, 544 in Thrissur
Following fatal accidents, a joint safety inspection of NH 66 and 544 in Thrissur found numerous deficiencies, prompting the District Collector to order urgent rectification by NHAI and relevant departments.
Following fatal accidents, a joint safety inspection of NH 66 and 544 in Thrissur found numerous deficiencies, prompting the District Collector to order urgent rectification by NHAI and relevant departments.
Following fatal accidents, a joint safety inspection of NH 66 and 544 in Thrissur found numerous deficiencies, prompting the District Collector to order urgent rectification by NHAI and relevant departments.
Thrissur: In the wake of repeated fatal accidents on national highways in the district, a joint safety inspection of NH 66 and 544 found several safety lapses across Thrissur. District Collector Shikha Surendran has directed the NHAI and other departments concerned to address the deficiencies urgently.
At a meeting of the District Safety Highway Task Force held at the Collectorate on September 5, the District Collector directed that all stretches of NH 66 and 544 in the district be inspected for road safety. An inspection team comprising representatives of the Motor Vehicles Department, Police, Local Self-Government Department and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) was formed for the purpose.
The team conducted field inspections and submitted its report. On NH 66, the inspection found several deficiencies, including inadequate direction-warning boards, construction debris that had not been removed, a lack of warning reflective signboards, unauthorised parking, shortcomings in the patrolling system and inadequate protective walls fitted with reflectors.
Similar deficiencies were also found on NH 544. Based on the findings, the District Collector directed the NHAI and other concerned departments to take urgent steps to rectify all the shortcomings.
The District Collector also directed that the construction of bus bays and the removal of unauthorised encroachments be completed. The NHAI had previously been instructed in May and June to take steps to address the deficiencies and shortcomings reported on the national highways, officials said.
The inspection was ordered in the wake of a series of serious accidents, including the September 4 crash at Panambikkunnu, Kaipamangalam, in which eight engineering students from Dindigul, Tamil Nadu, were killed. The accident occurred around 11.40 pm when a Tamil Nadu-registered car rammed into the rear of a Maharashtra-registered goods lorry parked on the highway.