KOCHI: Road accident severity (number of persons killed per 100 accidents) is lowest in Kochi among 50 cities with million-plus population. While Kochi recorded a rate of severity of 6.6%, Ludhiana, with a rate of 69.9%, topped the table, according to the latest statistics of the Union ministry of road transport and highways.Ludhiana reported the highest percentage of severity with 69 persons dying per 100 accidents, followed by Amritsar (67.1), Asansol-Durgapur (58.4), Patna (52.4), Varanasi (49.6) and Agra (49.2). Kochi is the last in the list.The trend is similar in the case of cities within Kerala as well. Malappuram, with 14.7% severity rate, leads the list, followed by Kollam (12.3%), Kannur (10.3%), Kozhikode (9.4%), Thrissur (9.4%) and Thiruvananthapuram (7.3%).Assistant commissioner of police Nazeer MA said strict review of accident prone zones is one of the reasons for the rate staying under control.“We identify accident spots and review the locations on a daily basis. Officers are deployed in such zones for routine checking to indicate that there is a police presence in the area. It will prevent people from speeding and violating other traffic rules, which can turn fatal,” said Nazeer. He added that they are working hard to bring down the death rate further down in the coming year.The number of deaths reported from Kochi is coming down as well. If the number of deaths were 169 in 2016, in 2017 it became 137. In the current year, 92 people have died in the city till October, show statistics.PD Sunil Babu, traffic safety expert, said the high rate of reportage is a big reason for the less severity of accidents in Kerala cities. “In north Indian states, accidents other that fatal ones, go unreported. Unless, the injury is grievous, the law enforcement agencies or the public refrains from lodging a case in connection with the accident. Here, however, even minor accidents are reported,” he said.Countering the claim, city traffic police officials pointed out that the city has the lowest rate of severity when compared with other cities in the state as well.However, the number of persons getting injured in accidents in the city is still high, with 1,750 people sustaining injuries in accidents in 2018 up to October, shows the data of the district crime records bureau. While 2,600 people were injured in 2017, that number stood at 1,871 in 2016.“Two-wheelers account for a major share of the total accident-related injuries. Careless riding without proper safety gears are major contributing factors. It is hardly machine error any more. Most accidents are due to human error,” said Sunil Babu.

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