The Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari has said that his ministry would give a grant of up to Rs 2 lakh to NGOs to take up road safety activities.

Addressing the national meet of NGOs working on road safety issues in New Delhi yesterday, Gadkari said that citizen participation is essential for making roads safe. He exhorted NGOs to create awareness about traffic rules and other road safety issues among the general public. He also called upon them to help the local MPs in identifying accident black spots in their constituencies and take steps to rectify them.

About 170 NGOs from all over the country met in the capital to deliberate upon various aspects and issues relating to road safety. There was a brief presentation on the occasion to highlight the rather grim road safety scenario in the country. There were presentations and discussions on various engineering solutions to road safety and the initiatives being taken in this direction, motor vehicle engineering to ensure safety on roads and also effective trauma care. The role of NGOs in spreading public awareness about road safety issues and their participation in other road safety activities was also discussed. The NGOs then shared their field experiences and suggestions with the forum.

The meet was part of the ongoing activities to mark the 28th Road Safety Week being observed by the ministry from January 9 to 15, 2017.