Mint explainer: What is MoRTH doing to reduce road deaths on India’s highways?

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India is building highways at a record pace, but safer roads have not followed automatically. With over 4.6 lakh road accidents and more than 1.6 lakh deaths every year, road crashes remain among the leading causes of death for young Indians, imposing a heavy human and economic toll.

As expressways multiply and speeds rise, policymakers have acknowledged that infrastructure expansion alone cannot deliver safe mobility. The government is now reworking how highways are designed, monitored and managed—going beyond expansion to systemic safety reform. Mint explains why highway safety has become a priority for the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), and how its multi-pronged strategy aims to save lives.

Although National Highways account for just 2–3% of India’s road network, they contribute a disproportionately high share of fatal accidents. High speeds, uncontrolled access points, mixed traffic, pedestrian and animal intrusion, poor night visibility, and delayed emergency response have turned many corridors into accident hotspots. The demographic impact is severe.

Nearly 66% of road fatalities occur in the 18–45 age group, India’s most economically productive population, while almost one-fourth of victims are below 25. This makes road safety not just a transport issue but a public health and economic concern. MoRTH has acknowledged that blaming drivers alone is ineffective.

Instead, it is adopting a “Safe System" approach—placing shared responsibility on road designers, vehicle makers, enforcement agencies and users, with the goal of preventing human errors from turning fatal. Technology-led prevention is now central to MoRTH’s strategy. Intelligent Transport Management