Road accidents rise sharply in Chitwan

Chitwan has seen a big increase in road accidents over the past year.

According to the District Police Office, there were 1,050 road accidents involving small and large vehicles in the last fiscal year. These accidents killed 120 people, seriously injured 172, and left 1,705 with minor injuries.

Compared to the previous fiscal year, the number of accidents has doubled. In 2080/81, there were 445 accidents with 115 deaths. In 2079/80, there were 303 accidents and 78 deaths. The number of accidents and deaths has been increasing every year.

Most accidents in the last year happened in the months of Poush (141 accidents) and Chaitra (134 accidents). The highest number of deaths occurred across various months, with 17 people dying in Asar alone.

Gayatri Raj Sharma, Chief of Chitwan Traffic Police, said the rise in accidents is due to smoother roads that increase vehicle speed, as well as the completion of road construction. He also pointed to more people driving under the influence and increased vehicle access as reasons for the spike in accidents.

More accidents on inner roads than highways

In the last fiscal year, 577 accidents happened on inner roads, causing 41 deaths. In the previous year, there were 250 inner road accidents and 50 deaths.

On the East-West Mahendra Highway, there were 255 accidents and 44 deaths last year, up from 96 accidents and 26 deaths the year before.

On the Narayangadh-Muglin road section, 104 accidents occurred last year, killing 28 people. In the previous year, there were 55 accidents and 21 deaths.

On the Prithvi Highway (from Muglin to Fishling), 28 accidents caused 2 deaths last year. A year earlier, there were 18 accidents and 10 deaths.

Urban roads also saw 86 accidents and 5 deaths last year, compared to 26 accidents and 8 deaths in the previous year.

Chief Sharma said accidents are tracked across five areas: East-West Highway, Narayangadh-Muglin section, Prithvi Highway, urban roads, and inner roads. Among these, inner roads have the most accidents and casualties.

He explained that people are more careful on highways but tend to drive carelessly on inner roads, often speeding, skipping helmets, or driving without proper training, which leads to more accidents.

Young men most affected

Out of 120 people who died in road accidents last year, 96 were men, 21 were women, and 3 were children. Most of the victims were between 20 and 40 years old.