Road Traffic Injuries in Tamil Nadu: A Growing Public Health Issue

ABSTRACT

Background: Every year about 5 million people die worldwide due to Injuries, Road traffic Injuries are a neglected public health problem. In the state of Tamil Nadu, India the total number of road accidents has been on a constant rise. Objective: This study aims to provide a description of the reported road traffic accidents in Tamil Nadu based on location, injury rates and fatality rates. Methods: Secondary data on Road traffic accidents was collected from state and national reports published on various authentic sources. Cluster analysis was carried. Result: Two-wheelers accounted for the highest share in total road accidents, Males were found to have higher risk than females. The districts with high injury rates were Villupuram, Ariyalur, Cuddalore, Thiruvarur, Kanchipuram and Nagapatinam. If the current circumstances continue, we predicted that, by the year 2023 the total number of accidents will be approximately 75985 in Tamilnadu. Conclusion: The Tamil Nadu Governments efforts to stop and reverse the increasing trend in the number of road traffic accidents, deaths, injuries through adoption of comprehensive measures covering Engineering, Education, Emergency care and Enforcement is seeing its results, but there is a need for more effective implementation across the state.