Fatal accidents expose failure of authorities to prevent reckless driving in Srinagar

Srinagar, Sep 19: A spate of fatal accidents have exposed the lack of road safety measures in the summer capital with people seeking strict measures to check reckless driving.

In the past three days alone, three precious lives have been lost in two separate incidents of rash driving.

A 13-year-old schoolgirl at Rainawari and a couple at Umerabad HMT were killed in rash driving, triggering anguish among people over inaction against reckless driving.

On Wednesday, heart-wrenching scenes gripped the Gurpora locality of Rainawari as the body of 13-year-old Madiha Farooq, killed in a speeding Eco van incident at Jogi Lanker, was brought home. Five other pedestrians remain hospitalised with injuries. A day later, a 50-year-old woman, Fahmeeda, and her husband, Bashir Ahmad, were fatally struck by a vehicle while crossing the road at Umerabad HMT.

Residents said these tragedies are not isolated but part of a growing pattern of reckless driving, poor road design, and lack of enforcement. “Every time we step outside, we pray we return alive. Speeding vehicles and unregulated student vans are a recipe for disaster,” said Ghulam Hassan of  Rainawari.

Citizens and civil society groups have been urging the Traffic Police to intensify drives against rash driving and to simultaneously raise awareness among both commuters and pedestrians on the safe use of roads.

“It cannot just be about fines. People must be educated on how to walk and drive safely. Lives are at stake, and we hope that traffic police will intensify their drives,” said Suhail Ahmed, a commuter.

Meanwhile, locals said that encroachments are compounding the problem. They said that despite repeated complaints, footpaths in downtown and other parts of the city remain occupied by vendors, forcing people to walk on busy carriageways.

“We are literally pushed into oncoming traffic because the pavements are full of stalls. Who will take responsibility for that? SMC should also step in to end encroachment across Srinagar footpaths, said Adil Hassan, a pedestrian at Downtown.

The Srinagarites said that major development works under the Smart City project and other departments in the past have been habitually carried out without any road safety measures in place while executing the projects. Residents allege that no interim road-safety measures, such as clear signage, protected crossings, or speed control, have been implemented at construction sites, and this remains the case to date, across all departments.

They said in several areas, poorly maintained dividers and overgrown plants have become dangerous blind spots. “Even a small child can tell you that a divider full of shrubs blocks your view. Yet nothing is done until someone dies,” remarked an elderly commuter at HMT.

SSP Srinagar City Ajaz Ahmad Bhat, who visited the site of Thursday’s fatal accident, expressed grief over the loss of lives. He said traffic police have been maintaining a strict vigil on speeding and other violations, but would intensify drives from Saturday. “We are doing our part, but infrastructural issues have to be addressed as well. At the Umerabad accident spot, the divider and trees are being maintained. Such separators have become blind spots, and pedestrians are usually at risk. We hope that all concerns will be addressed so that roads are safer,” Bhat added.