Traffic violations a bigger problem than cybercrime and drugs, says Revanth Reddy

More people are dying in road accidents than wars, said Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy on Monday as he launched the ‘Arrive Alive’ road safety awareness campaign at Sri Kotla Vijaya Bhaskar Reddy indoor stadium in Yousufguda.

Addressing the gathering, the Chief Minister said awareness must be created among students from a young age and stressed that traffic violations had become a bigger problem than cybercrime, drugs and murders. “Fines for violations should be automatically deducted from vehicle owners’ accounts,” he said, adding that the traffic system needed urgent reform and technological upgradation.

The Chief Minister said that the government was upgrading the police system in tune with changing crime patterns, had set up special mechanisms to tackle cybercrime and constituted the EAGLE force to combat the drug menace. He said Telangana Police had earned global recognition for controlling drugs and marijuana and that initiatives such as HYDRAA had been launched to protect tanks, ponds and canals.

Director General of Police B. Shivadhar Reddy, in his address, said the campaign was being launched to reduce accidents, deaths and injuries and should be taken forward as a people’s movement rather than a police programme alone. He said Telangana had a road network of about 30,000 km, with nearly 27,000 accidents annually, resulting in around 7,500 deaths and 25,000 injuries. Compared to about 800 murders in a year, road accidents claimed almost nine to ten times more lives.

He said 935 accident-prone black spots had been identified and that although accidents increased in 2025 compared to 2024, fatalities had come down due to improved emergency response and ‘golden hour’ training. He noted that 75% to 80 % of those killed were two-wheeler riders and pedestrians, mostly in the productive age group of 20 to 40 years.

The DGP said the 10-day campaign, from January 13 to January 24, would involve students, rural communities, women, transport workers, corporates, NGOs, celebrities and the media, with awareness programmes, training, enforcement drives and community participation aimed at making Telangana a model State for road safety.