The Message And The Messengers: Working to save avoidable deaths in road accidents

(Creative media persons craft interesting, useful, and effective campaigns on road safety on the spot as UNICEF Road Safety experts paint a grim picture of growing but avoidable accidental deaths on the roads across India). 

Creativity at its best – of a group of talented media persons from the streams of Print, Digital, and Radio congregated at the invitation of UNICEF for a two-day brain-storming session on how to carry the message to the masses on cutting down fatalities in road accidents – came to the fore.

The officialdom connected with the international funding agency that carries out children-specific programmes and campaigns relating to their health and safety may have had its assessments of creativity of media persons, working under tremendous stress and impossible deadlines. But, the quality, and quantum of the outcome of on-the-spot quick campaigns on the theme ‘prevention of avoidable fatalities in road accidents’ was a revelation.

Thinking on the feet and thinking out of the box, the two qualities that creative persons embody in themselves as they take every minute as a challenge were out in full display, in terms of the interesting, enjoyable and even useful jingles, stories and messaging for the masses, at the two-day National Media Workshop on Road Safety organised by the UNICEF at Gandhinagar, in association with International Automobile Centre for Excellence, a Govt of India and Maruti joint initiative to train mechanics and drivers on safety aspects.

For sure, from the raw material coming from the presentations of the UNICEF experts on road safety, with decades of experience on the subject that was somewhat repetitive, and lengthy.

But media men, and women, came up with a collection of sparkling one-liners, riveting stories and Acapulco music to add punch to the messaging on prevention of fatalities on the roads. For special mention here is RJ Krishna of Red FM Hyderabad who whistled his group to victory with the best campaign product with his ‘music’ and songs that had the congregation swaying

Now coming to accident victims, children are often the most defenceless, also due to their inability to comprehend the multitude of factors that cause accidents. Many of these avoidable deaths are caused by collective negligence, rashness, and often improper driving of vehicles of all shapes and sizes. On an average, 400 people die in road accidents every day in India, making it the Number one country in the world in this regard.

Alarmingly, the sum and substance of five in-depth presentations by road safety experts highlighted the fact that “we don’t seem to be slowing down” as statistical evidence shows an increase of 10 percent in road deaths annually in India. Meanwhile, the journey between life and death continues on the highways, roads, lanes, and bylanes of cities, towns, and villages across the country.

The Workshop begins

To begin at the beginning of the well-curated, event of October 15-16, a very handsome person with film star like good looks, Dr Narayan Gaonkar, UNICEF Gujarat expert welcomed the guests, participants, and media persons – for whom the workshop was designed to expand their capabilities to spread the messaging on road safety – followed by Sonia Sarkar, the Communications Officer of UNICEF India, setting the agenda.

And then started the in-depth presentations by the specialists – Dr Syed Hubbe Ali, UNICEF Delhi, Dr G Gururaj, former Director, WHO Collaborating Centre, NIMHAMS, Dr Sridhar Ryavanki, specialist from Telangana and Amar Karan, who shared his experiences from Pune and how they were trying to cut down road fatalities.

It was then that a young 15-something, the only teenager present at the Workshop, Avira Bhat, came up with a perspective of the youth and children, that often do not find a voice in the public space so readily on issues that concern and affect them. Hailing from a family that has been engaged in road safety aspects, it was only natural that she too was concerned, and scared, for self and countless children who must navigate the situation around their school, homes and in the marketplaces and parks they frequent. She was bold enough to admit that she herself was privileged enough to be using a safer vehicle to commute, Avira maintained that most children do not have that luxury.

In her youthful exuberance and the pressure of the occasion for the child may have gotten the better of her, and she fumbled on make an adverse comment on the role of media in a sense that annoyed the media persons, and even few of the experts gathered in the hall. But this aside, her experiences and perspective sure is food for thought for the elders in general, and policy makers in particular, to address her concerns coming out as a child.

Yes, through these presentations of the experts, one came to realize the chilling statistics of child victims of road accidents: road traffic crashes are the leading killers of children and youth aged 5 to 19 years in India. Half of the people killed in road accidents are children, and boys are disproportionately affected. Over-speeding is responsible for 72% of deaths, and most motorcycle fatalities occur due to head injuries. Simply using a quality helmet can reduce the risk of death by 70%.

Rising Road Fatalities

But the cold reality is that children and adolescents remain the most vulnerable among all the road accident victims – crying out the need to address this urgently, and with a determined focus. Which is why, UN and WHO have drawn up The Global Plan for the Decade of Action (2021-2030), which outlines recommended actions drawn from proven and effective interventions as well as best practices for preventing road trauma. The target is to reduce road traffic injuries and deaths at least by 50% by 2030.

Time and again, UNICEF brings together road accident experts, who have been working on road safety for decades, health and rehabilitation specialists, civil society members and media professionals to refine and redraft a ‘solutions package’ to tackle the Problem.

In India, there are 15 government departments, which are connected to Road Safety, and this itself presents a nightmare for anyone working in this arena – to get hold of different officials and get them to agree on a coordinated, purposeful plan to overcome the challenge of accidents.

Yes, development and growth, of which increasing number of vehicles is a positive indicator of the economy. But along with the growth in vehicle population, what one needs are plans to improve safety on roads, which for the present seems to be either missing or ineffective or both if the growing numbers are any indication.

“The developed west has tackled the road accident deaths very well and minimized them, unlike here in India,” says G Gururaj, former director NIMHANS, Bangalore. Experts said, “We are now equipped with ample evidence and use the science to reduce this preventable cause of death and disability.”

It is not without personal pain, anguish, and purposefulness that experts like him maintain,

“India’s road accidents are growing at 10 percent per annum and the problem needs immediate and comprehensive solutions.”  Ironically, the experts, maintain, “increased motorization has impacted the health of the people.”

But the experts assert: Most of these deaths can be prevented with simple safety measures and improving driving etiquetes. The key is collective responsibility and a multi-departmental Safe systems approach.

Dr Syed Hubbe Ali, UNICEF Delhi underscored the urgency of addressing road safety from a child rights perspective: “India accounts for 1% of the world’s vehicles but 11% of all road accident deaths and 6% of total road crashes, according to a World Bank 2021 report. Children and adolescents are particularly vulnerable, with over-speeding near schools being a major risk factor.

Media, the right messenger

“Through media, we can promote awareness to reduce the number of injuries and deaths through critical safety measures like helmet use, speed limits, and seatbelt usage.” These look like simple solutions, but they are effective, said Gururaj, echoing the sentiments of the other experts, like Dr Narayan Gaonkar, UNICEF Gujarat Health Expert, said.

Workshop takeaways for the media professionals were: The good news is there are solutions to tackle the problem, and the better news is that few positive initiatives are making a difference on the ground, already.

Dr Sridhar Ryavanki, UNICEF health specialist from Hyderabad, Telangana, was the harbinger of positive news. He outlined how simple interventions in an area on the outskirts of Hyderabad – known as Killer Road that was claiming 70 lives a year — reduced the number of deaths to Zero this year. “This model is not just replicable elsewhere but is also scalable, he told the Workshop,”  and added, “the Hyderabad Success Formula could be with anyone but for asking.”

Sonia Sarkar, Communications Officer, UNICEF India, said “As we explored during the workshop, the solutions to prevent these tragedies are well within our reach. With the right blend of awareness, enforcement, and community commitment, we can make a meaningful difference. The slogan “Speed Thrills but Kills” serves as a reminder that over-speeding remains a critical factor in road accidents worldwide, and especially so, in India, where traffic regulations are often disregarded. However, change is possible through collective action.” If, day one was spent thus in serious deliberations, of statistics, strategies, and solutions, day two of the workshop was full of light-hearted fun elements, proving the maxim that all work and no play make Johns and Jills dull boys and girls.

Key takeaways

Here participants were divided into four groups and given one hour to make road safety campaigns out of the interactions one has had since the event began on the previous day.

If there was a group, headed by Dr Madhurendra Sinha, former Editor of Navbharat, a Times of India group publication, was assigned to come out with a print product, a special supplement on the theme “Consistent use of the right type of helmet, titled Helmet for Life”.

Another group had the job of producing a Special, Newspaper supplement on “Drive Sober, Save Lives”, the third one was to produce a 60-second PSA (Public Service Announcement) promoting adherence to speed limits while driving and the fourth group was assigned to produce a 60-Second Public Service Announcement on “promoting consistent use of seat belts” with focus on family safety and safety of children.

Nikita from Radio Orange, Nagpur, a lively Radio Jockey just 20-year-old, found the entire outing as a very interesting and useful exercise, one that would help her give sharper focus to the issues of road safety. Yes, she has been speaking of about road safety in general, but the information download at the workshop has made a lot of difference in her already. “The experience has been great. I have never attended anything like this before. Especially, as a person coming from Gen Z, we don’t speak about such serious issues, but I clearly understand that there is a need to make a lot of noise,” Nikita told Southonomix as participants began to say goodbyes.

“As a responsible RJ of a big channel, I know the importance of giving the right message to the masses, especially when radio has reached out to the cars from the kitchens and in fact, airwaves can be found anywhere and everywhere,” said Prateek, Red FM, Radio Jockey from Lucknow.

“But even before I came here for the workshop, I have been speaking a lot about road safety issues on my show. I give traffic updates every hour, I become an alarm for seat belts, and urge people not to honk unnecessarily and add to driving stress of others,” he said. And for the immediate future, he is getting ready to face the Maha Kumbh that is about to happen, where devotees from 194 countries come, and it will be a challenge for the traffic police and administration to tackle the crowds and traffic at that time,” Prateek said.

For RJ Shatabdi from Chandigarh, the biggest download from the Road Safety workshops was how to execute ideas and an exchange of ideas, that expand one’s ability to carry out similar campaigns on any theme. “Ideation is the key, which works wonders, and this is the biggest takeaway for me as a participant at this workshop,” she said.

“In Chandigarh, no one breaks rules. I wish to present Chandigarh as a success model to the rest of the nation by sharing my experiences with other Red FM stations across the country. Also, the digital presence of mine enables followers from across the country and beyond in foreign locales to listen to me and follow me. So, spreading the message is absolutely within my ambit, and infact this is what we as RJs do, every ‘speaking minute’ of our professional lives, she said signing off from the Ahmedabad Airport.