As reported by this daily on Tuesday, people advocating for safer roads have expressed resentment over a clause in the road transport law that retains a provision of maximum 5 years imprisonment and paying highest Tk 5 lakh as compensation for those killed in road accidents.
Reportedly, many activists urged the government to raise the amount of compensation that would go to victims and families. They proposed that Tk 5 lakh as mentioned in the law is ‘too soft’ as a punishment for road accidents. They urged the government to increase the punishment to at least 10 years for causing death to a person for reckless driving.
The expected road safety in the country is still a far
cry as the procession of death on the country’s roads
and highways is continuing unabated
The expected road safety in the country is still a far cry as the procession of death on the country’s roads and highways is continuing unabated. Despite repeated assurances from the authorities to take strict action against reckless drivers accidents are continuing at an alarming rate.
We feel the authorities concerned should take immediate measures to improve the current road safety issues, such as examining driver’s skill, discouraging reckless driving, improving the traffic police control system and ensuring more cooperation between the workers and owners.
Too many lives are being lost on our roads every day, and it’s time the government put all-out efforts to bring some order on the road. It is high time that authorities take stern actions against reckless driving. Also unskilled drivers of vehicles, most often not having a legal licence, should be identified and punished. We hope that authorities concerned will take more severe steps in ensuring punishment of the drivers who do not follow the traffic rules.
