Recognising and rewarding motorists who follow traffic rules should become an important part of India’s road safety strategy alongside stricter enforcement, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said, citing a pilot project in Nagpur that rewarded safe drivers with discount coupons from businesses.
Speaking at the Uber Surakshit 2026 event, Gadkari said motorists who stopped at traffic signals and complied with road rules under the Nagpur initiative received discount coupons that could be redeemed at departmental stores, malls, restaurants and other participating brands. The initiative, he said, has already delivered benefits worth around ₹20 crore to motorists.
“I did a good experiment in Nagpur. People who stop at every signal and do not violate the rules are given discount coupons by big companies,” Gadkari said. “Those who do bad things get punished. But those who do good things do not get respect or recognition. We have to support those who follow the rules so that such numbers increase.”
The minister made the remarks while stressing that changing driver behaviour is critical to reducing road fatalities. According to Gadkari, India records around 5 lakh road accidents and nearly 1.8 lakh deaths every year, with about 66% of the victims between the ages of 18 and 34, resulting in an estimated 3% loss to the country’s GDP.
He said road safety rests on four pillars: road engineering, automobile engineering, enforcement and human behaviour, but described human behaviour as “the root of the problem”. Gadkari pointed to common violations such as jumping red lights, driving on the wrong side of the road, using mobile phones while driving, failing to wear helmets and ignoring lane discipline as major contributors to road accidents.
Citing official data, Gadkari said overspeeding accounts for around 1.2 lakh road deaths annually, while non-use of helmets leads to more than 54,000 deaths and non-use of seatbelts results in over 14,000 fatalities. Wrong-side driving, drunk driving and mobile phone use while driving also remain major causes of fatal crashes, he added.
Calling on the mobility industry to contribute beyond technology, Gadkari urged Uber to leverage its large driver network to promote better driving behaviour. He said training drivers in etiquette, manners and responsible road behaviour would enhance both the company’s credibility and that of its drivers.
The minister also highlighted the government’s efforts to encourage bystander assistance following road accidents. Referring to the Good Samaritan initiative, he said individuals who take accident victims to a hospital are eligible for a ₹25,000 reward, while the Centre bears treatment costs of up to ₹1.5 lakh for seven days for eligible road accident victims.