Roads turn death trap for pedestrians

Our roads are simply not the safest places for pedestrians, it seems. As many as 3,272 pedestrians lost their lives in the state in road accidents in a matter of 18 months.

 This shocking data was presented in the Assembly on Monday by Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan. In all, 21,665 pedestrians were also injured in road accidents during 2010-2011 and between January 1 and June 30, 2012, Thiruvanchoor said in a written reply.

 He said that the Police Department has launched intensive efforts to ensure the safety of pedestrians with the co-operation of the PWD and the Motor Vehicles and Education Departments. All district police chiefs have been instructed to ensure pedestrian safety. Speed radars and interceptors are in use to nab motorists breaking the speed limits.

 In addition to this, instructions have been given to clear footpaths of various objects, to fit them with railings and provide roads with zebra crossings. Additional policemen and home guards are also being deployed in public places which witness heavy rush.

 The Government is also conducting awareness  programmes with the help of NGOs, Kudumbashree units, school protection forces and residents’ associations, he said.

Migrant Labourers’Issue

K Muraleedharan MLA on Monday drew the attention of the Assembly to the increasing number of incidents in the State capital involving migrant labourers. Muraleedharan said that a large number of migrant labourers were engaged in construction work in the capital, but there have also been reports of migrant labourers attacking women and girls.

 ‘’Many of these labourers are from Bengal and Nepal,’’ he said, urging the Government to prepare a report on the said incidents. Replying to the demand, Home Minister Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said that the State Government did not possess accurate data on migrant labourers employed in the State.

 ‘’We don’t have an exact figure. And the data with the Labour Department also is not exact. The State Government is trying to get the labourers issued identity cards as part of addressing the problem,’’ Thiruvanchoor said.

 According to the Minister, as many as 63,200 labourers are registered with the Police Department, but unofficial figures put the actual number of migrant labourers working in the State at ten lakhs.