NCRB: Negligent driving kills 495 people every day on Indian roads in 2024

New Delhi: Road fatalities due to negligence (reckless, careless or irresponsible driving) killed 495 people every day in 2024, according to the latest report by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). According to the report, nearly 181,000 people were killed in such accidents, an increase of nearly 4.4% from the previous year.The death toll in 2024 is also higher than the 177,000 fatalities provided to parliament by the Department of Roads and Transport. The ministry is yet to release a report on accidents on Indian roads. NCRB will also release a separate detailed report on accidental deaths in 2024.According to NCRB (under the Ministry of Home Affairs), Uttar Pradesh reported the highest number of road deaths (25,158) due to negligence in 2024, followed by Tamil Nadu (18,676), Karnataka (16,232), Madhya Pradesh (15,440) and Maharashtra (15,249). All these states reported an increase in road fatalities compared to 2023, indicating that India’s roads are becoming more unsafe.The NCRB report also revealed that the number of fatalities in hit-and-run cases increased from 55,334 in 2023 to 56,974 in 2024, with Uttar Pradesh topping the list with 19,641 fatalities, followed by MP (10,130) and Bihar (4,949). Among cities with a population of more than 1 million, Delhi reported the highest number of hit-and-run deaths at 949, followed by Bengaluru (773) and Jaipur (744).India leads the list in terms of road fatalities, accounting for more than 12% of all such fatalities globally. Despite government requests and efforts, deaths have not declined in recent years and this remains a major challenge.