Cashless Treatment for Road Mishap Victims Soon

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) plans to introduce cashless medical treatment to all injured road accident victims across the nation within the next three to four months.

The free and cashless medical treatment to accident injured victims is part of the amended Motor vehicle Act 2019 (MVA, 2019). Some states have implemented it but now the ministry of roads in league with the ministry of health and family welfare will be fully implementing it across the nation.

Such cashless treatment shall be extended to road accident victims including during golden hour, as defined by the MV Amendment Act said. Golden Hour is the one hour time period lasting an hour following a traumatic injury during which there is the highest likelihood of preventing death by providing prompt medical care.

According to a research, India has the highest number of road accident deaths in the world. Aiming to reduce accident by 50% by 2030, the road ministry has formulated a multi-pronged strategy based on 5E’s of road safety. This includes education, engineering (both of roads and vehicles), enforcement and emergency care.

As part of road engineering, road safety has been made an integral part of road design at the planning stage. Initiative to increase awareness about road safety, the ministry of education will soon include road safety as part of curriculum for schools and colleges to be implemented.