The speed limit in India varies depending on the state. Nationally it is 100km/h on expressways.
From personal experience it is very dangerous to drive in India because no one really pays attention to the road rules and the lanes. Not many people obey the traffic signals or take the safety precautions to prevent a road accident. Not to mention you have to also avoid the stray cows and other animals on the road.
Driving in India can be more dangerous than you and I can ever imagine. According to the statistical reports published in 2013, an accident occurs in every minute in India. When all the developed nations are focusing on reducing the rates of accidental deaths, Indian roads have become worse than ever. According to a report published by the World Health Organization (2013), India has the highest number of road accidental deaths (105,725 people died on the road) in the world. Among the Indian states, Maharashtra (where Mumbai has the highest number of death cases i.e. 25,471 road accidents) tops the list followed by Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The report also clarifies that inefficient law enforcement, drunken driving, low user adoption of helmets and seat belts and lack of child restraints in the vehicles are the main causes behind such a high rate of road accidents in India.
http://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/government/traffic-signs-and-road-safety
http://www.mapsofindia.com/my-india/india/worst-road-accidents-in-india-a-year-wise-breakdown
One serious road accident in the country occurs every minute and 16 die on Indian roads every hour.
1214 road crashes occur every day in India.
Two wheelers account for 25% of total road crash deaths.
20 children under the age of 14 die every day due to road crashes in in the country.
377 people die every day, equivalent to a jumbo jet crashing every day.
Two people die every hour in Uttar Pradesh – State with maximum number of road crash deaths.
Tamil Nadu is the state with the maximum number of road crash injuries
Top 10 Cities with the highest number of Road Crash Deaths (Rank –Wise):
Delhi (City)
Chennai
Jaipur
Bengaluru
Mumbai
Kanpur
Lucknow
Agra
Hyderabad
Pune
Chennai
Jaipur
Bengaluru
Mumbai
Kanpur
Lucknow
Agra
Hyderabad
Pune
Source of Information: National Crime Records Bureau, Ministry of Road Transport & Highway, Law commission of India, Global status report on road safety 2013
http://sites.ndtv.com/roadsafety/important-feature-to-you-in-your-car/
Most common causes of road accidents in India
- Over Speeding
- Drunken Driving
- Distractions to Driver
- Red Light Jumping
- Avoiding Safety Gears like Seat belts and Helmets
- Non-adherence to lane driving and overtaking in a wrong manner
http://www.jhpolice.gov.in/road-safety/common-causes-of-road-accidents
There definitely is a huge incline in the amount of people injured per 100,000. The amount of people killed also has inclined steadily.
http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/2.12.India_.pdf
India has a road network of over 4,689,842 kilometres (2,914,133 mi) in 2013, the second largest road network in the world. At 0.66 km of roads per square kilometre of land, the quantitative density of India's road network is similar to that of the United States (0.65) and far higher than that of China (0.16) or Brazil (0.20). However, qualitatively India's roads are a mix of modern highways and narrow, unpaved roads, and are being improved. As of 2011, 54 percent – about 2.53 million kilometres – of Indian roads were paved.
India has a vast amount of different roads that serve different purposes.
Expressways - Expressways make up approximately 1,208 km (751 mi) of India's road network, as of 2013. These high-speed roads are four-lane or six-lane, predominantly access controlled.
National Highways - The main highways running through the length and breadth of the country connecting major ports, state capitals, large industrial and tourist centres, etc. National Highways in India are designated as NH followed by the highway number. Indian national highways are further classified based on the width of carriageway of the highway.
State Highways - The State Highways provide linkages with the National Highways, district headquarters, important towns, tourist centres and minor ports and carry the traffic along major centres within the state. Their total length is about 137,712 km.
Major District Roads - These are important roads within a district connecting areas of production with markets and connecting these with each other or with the State Highways & National Highways.
Rural Roads - The rural roads in India forms a substantial portion of the Indian road network. These roads are in poor shape, affecting the rural population's quality of life and Indian farmer's ability to transfer produce to market post-harvest. Over 30 percent of Indian farmer's harvest spoils post-harvest because of the poor infrastructure. Many rural roads are of poor quality, potholed, and unable to withstand the loads of heavy farm equipment. These roads are also far from all season, good quality 2-lane or 4-lane highways, making economic resource flow slow, and logistical costs between different parts of India one of the highest in the world.
http://www.jotr.in/article.asp?issn=0975-7341;year=2013;volume=6;issue=1;spage=1;epage=6;aulast=Ruikar
In conclusion if we compare the data from India with Nepal, there are more deaths (per 100,000) in Nepal than India due to road accidents. But looking at the data there are more accidents in India than there are in Nepal.
Things will probably get worse before they get better. Traffic fatalities increased by about 5 percent per year from 1980 to 2000, and since then have increased by about 8 percent per year.
Domestic vehicle sales increased from 97 lakh in 2008 to almost 2 crore in 2014. There is a strong correlation between the increase in vehicles and increase in road fatalities. Some estimates suggest traffic fatalities will grow five-fold in India by 2050 if we do not take adequate action.
