Most of the speed breakers in city violating MoST norms

Tahir Mushtaq

JAMMU, Jan 08: Most of the speed breakers on city roads have been constructed in complete violation of the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Surface Transport (MoST), Government of India.


Sources said that there are 244 speed breakers on the minor and link roads in the city which were constructed by the J&K Public Works department. Details reflect the sorry state-of-affairs on the part of authorities concerned especially in the backdrop of increasing number of persons getting killed in road mishaps.


Only 20 Speed Breakers have cautionary signs as per IRC 67 (Indian Road Congress) are followed and in some places cautionary lines are painted with the road marking point.


Though PWD authorities have replied that there was no Speed Breaker constructed on highway by them, yet on roads there are numberless deadly speed breakers which were constructed without following guidelines.


“For the last few years there have been many fatal road accidents happened in the areas surrounding Jammu city and around but authorities remained least bothered about such incidents”, said a source.


Officials said that innocent citizens are being killed and injured in road accidents due to the negligence of the Works Department but the officer at the helm of affairs are instead of doing the needful openly confessing their negligence.


Under IRC-67 guidelines, 15 meters ahead of every speed breakers there must be cautionary sign board so that the driver may take control of the vehicle Speed and avoid the accident.


It may be recalled here that over 900 people were killed in road accidents in Jammu and Kashmir past year, taking the number of deaths caused by vehicular mishaps over the last five years close to 5,000 mark, which was higher than the number of persons killed in militancy in the corresponding period.


The number of people killed in road accidents over the years was much more than those killed in militancy-related incidents, as 3,183 persons including civilians, militants and security force personnel were killed in the five-year period from 2006-10.