HMG7100 Assessment 4: Policy Brief on Road Traffic Accidents in Nepal

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of road traffic accidents in Nepal, focusing on their significance as a public health issue. The executive summary highlights the alarming rate of accidents and fatalities, particularly in urban areas, attributing them to poor road conditions, increased vehicle numbers, and environmental factors. The report delves into the context and importance of the problem, emphasizing Nepal's high incidence of road accidents compared to other Southeast Asian nations. It explores the root causes, including geographical challenges, rapid urbanization, and inadequate road infrastructure. The policy implications of the problem are discussed, examining the socio-political, medical, and financial pressures resulting from road accidents. The report critiques the existing Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act, 2049 (1993), identifying loopholes related to driver behavior, vehicle maintenance, and insurance. It highlights the need for a central road safety agency and a comprehensive road safety plan. Recommendations include reviving the National Road Safety Council, formulating a road safety strategy, and empowering legal authorities to improve road safety measures and mitigate the loss of life from road accidents. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of addressing the multifaceted issues contributing to road traffic accidents to ensure the safety of commuters and drivers in Nepal.

Running head: ROAD TRAFFIC ACCIDENT IN NEPAL
Road Traffic Accident in Nepal
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Executive Summary
It is reported that one death occurs per 5.8 accidents and it is very high in the urban part of the
country that has occurred due to the poor condition of the roads and the high number of the
vehicles. It is important to mention that the severity of accidents alone is a major factor that
causes injuries and death. Environmental factors are the ones that have significantly affected the
road accident and health of the people as well. The population of Nepal is at its limit and it is
also called as one of the most polluted nations in the world. The vehicles that are most accessible
in Nepal are the bicycle, moped, scooter, and motorbike. The driver/rider of these vehicles is at
the increased amount of risk from the exposure to noise and polluted air. Therefore, in a larger
context the people that use open vehicles are at the risk of developing cancer, heart disease, lung
diseases, respiratory diseases, and this as whole impacts health significantly. The other areas that
need attention are the lack of a skilled driver, old vehicles, lack of safety, poor conditions of the
roads, and the different types of faults in the system. The road safety authorities can make
improvements in these areas so as to ensure road safety.

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Context and importance of the problem
Issue in focus
The road accidents are of great concern for an individual across the different counties and
it can be considered as an alarming health issue that poses road accident as a hazard. In
comparison to all the countries, Southeast Asia nations are the ones that are the worst affected by
the higher incidents of road accidents. It can be said that the rate of road accidents, there is a total
of 20.7 deaths per 1000,000 populations. It has been found that Nepal is one of the countries in
Southeast Asia that have the highest incidence of road accidents and injuries. Nepal has a total
population of 28 million and Nepal is a developing country that has an approximate expenditure
of 4.8 percent of the GDP (Saud and Paudel 2018). It is important to mention that the financial
budgeting on the health-related services and the quality of the health services are both poor in
Nepal when it is compared with the other in South East Asia. The WHO report in 2018 has
highlighted an alarming growth in the road accidents in Nepal and it is one of the biggest
concern for itself as it has been ranked as the 6th largest cause for the mortality in the nation.
Recent data released by the Government of Nepal has highlighted that a total of 10000 to 11000
accidents occurred and it lead to the death of 2000 individuals and 9000 were fatal as well as
non-fatal injuries (World Health Organization. 2018).
The root cause of the problem
One of the leading causes of the accidents in Nepal is the geographical location of the
country and the majority of the accidents occur in the urban areas of the country. The
urbanization in Nepal at a rapid scale has led to an unprecedented increase in the number of
vehicles and the increase in population as well.

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Policy implications of the problem that clearly establishes the current importance and policy
relevance of the issue
The road conditions are worse and very dangerous that directly increases the possibility
of accidents. The probability of accidents occurring in Nepal is higher than India and Japan and
the probability percentage is 80 percent. Nepal is a developing nation and the increasing rate of
road accident per year leads to a greater degree of issue in the country. It is a serious challenge
for the nation that is in a developing stage and the high burden of the road accidents exerts a big
amount of pressure on the socio-political, medical, behavioural, geographical, environmental and
financial paradigms due to the extremity of the issue (Sapkota, Bista and Adhikari 2016).
Therefore, the policies made for the reduction of road traffic accidents will highly impact the
practices of the driver, the negligence regarding actions of the driver. When the health
frameworks are taken as a reference, it can be seen that there are a lot of factors that lead to road
accidents in Nepal. Considering the road condition of Nepal, there is a total of 3.1 million
vehicles that runs within the country that has a geographical area of 147,181 square km. This
highlights that there is an increased burden on the road that is already in a deteriorating
condition. Therefore it can be said that road traffic accident can be effectively controlled through
potential strategies of accident control and management of road safety (Mishra et al. 2017).
Critique of policy options
The existing policy Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act, 2049 (1993)
highlights that The transportation services will be made effective, efficient and consolidated so
as to prevent the motor vehicles accidents. this will enable the victims to have compensation and
provide insurance that will make the transportation facilities available to the general public in an

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easy and simple way. The Act will facilitate the victim of the accident with proper insurance,
compensation and that will make transportation facilities valuable to the general public.
The Motor Vehicles and Transport Management Act, 2049 (1993) includes punishment
for road accidents. The Act highlight that if a person in any manner in which a person that was
either in a vehicle or outside the vehicle dies immediately then it will be termed as an accident.
Even if the accident was committed intentionally it will be considered as a homicide. The
accident will be considered as an act that has been caused due to reckless driving and it is
intended that driving vehicles can actually cause the death of a person. Such a person will be
punished with imprisonment for a period of two to ten years. The punishment will be decided
depending upon the gravity of the situation (Lawcommission.gov.np 2019). A situation where a
person is driving a motor vehicle and it does not seem that the person inside or outside the
vehicle is not in a position to die. Whereas, if an accident takes place and any of the person
whether inside or outside the vehicle dies. Then the person that was driving the vehicle will be
held responsible. The driver will also be punished with an imprisonment of one year and or a fine
up to two thousand rupees. Both the punishment can also be given to the person. If the owner of
a vehicle does to hold a driving license and he hits or runs over another person and meets an
accident, then the person who is inside the vehicle or outside becomes disables due to the event.
Then the person who was driving the vehicle will be a person will be punished with
imprisonment for not more than 8 years or fine not exceeding five thousand rupees
(Lawcommission.gov.np 2019).
It is important to mention that the total length of the vehicles that are operating in the
Kathmandu valley is actually more than the length of the roads. The length of the roads will be
4.8 million feet whereas, the length of the vehicles will be 7.2 million feet. It has been

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highlighted that there are multiple causes of road accidents and it is mainly related to the
behaviours of the driver. The mechanical conditions of the vehicles and the condition of the
roads are the major contributor to road accidents (Karkee and Lee 2016). It is important to
highlight that a huge number of buses crashes indicates that it is related to driving-related issues.
Issues like the consumption of alcohol and driving, overwork, overloading, overtaking, speeding
also contribute to the increase in road accidents. These issues are not highlighted in the Motor
Vehicles and Transport Management Act, 2049 (1993). It can be said that there are accidents that
occur are due to the presence of the loopholes in the Motor Vehicles and Transport Management
Act, 2049 (1993). It can be said that the data on the traffic accidents highlights that the driving-
related issues are more are higher than the pedestrian negligence or mechanical faults
(Anantharaman and Logaraj 2015).
The Act has failed miserably because the insurance system for the vehicle owners/drivers
along with the third party insurances are not developed in a proper and well- mannered way. It is
important to mention that if a takes place due to the negligence of the driver then that person is
sent to prison. However, if the driver does not fault then the alleged driver is released just after
paying fines. While it is important to mention that the Nepal government has increased the fines
for the violation of the traffic rules and it has been done by amending section 164 of the Act of
1993. This has come to effect from the 14th May 2015 (Shrestha et al. 2017). Furthermore, it can
be mentioned that the road conditions are slippery and there are risks associated with the
landslides, narrow mountain roads, carelessness and also due to overcrowded vehicles. There is a
further reason for road accidents like the poor road engineering, lack of awareness of the traffic
rules, roadside parking, wrongly chosen location of the passing bays, inadequate safety barriers,
lack of visibility of the at the blind corners, and the road corners. All these factors are

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highlighted to be causing road traffic that has accidents in Nepal roads. Traffic congestion is also
a major factor in which the driver that are stuck in a traffic jams drive fast after they are stuck in
the traffic jam for too long (Choulagai et al., 2015).
Recommendations
The alarming increase in the rate of the accidents has highlighted the need for an overall
road safety plan that can ensure the road safety of the commuters, the driver that use vehicles for
their everyday purposes. There are various reasons for the cause of road accidents in Nepal
roads. There are a lot many reasons than the ones that indirectly affect and cause road accidents.
Such road accidents will not be taken into account.
It is important to mention that the poorly maintained vehicles ferry passengers that are
being driven by the inexperienced drivers that lack the knowledge of driving safely. The
operators of the public transport services also lack the accountability that leads to vehicle crashes
as well as mechanical errors (Kathmandupost.ekantipur.com 2019). Whereas, it can be noted that
it can be fixed with a simple tune-up procedure. Therefore, this requires a central road safety
agency that can coordinate with the stakeholders that are involved with the safety in the roads.
This agency can be brought into place for improving road safety in the country. National Road
Safety Council was set up in the year 1990 by the Nepal government and they have undertaken
the road safety interventions but it is dysfunctional now due to its faulty designs. This typical
council can be revived as it can be felt that road safety is a shared responsibility and the sectors
need to work together so as to minimise the accidents and ensure safety as well. A road safety
strategy can be formulated that can effectively and efficiently mitigate the loss of life from road
accidents and a council can also be formed. Nepal already has a Nepal road safety action plan for
the year 2013 to 2020 that suggests that adoption of the broader safety for the improvement of

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road safety (Adhikari 2016). The plan can be used to improve as well as empower the legal
authorities so as to delegate work among the different agencies. It is important to highlight that
other than monitoring road safety, and the various initiatives of the various agencies. The council
can work along with the common frameworks so that the different stakeholders can implement
the measures and intervention necessary for the mitigation of road traffic accidents. The best
initiative as of now is the setting up of a central body that will be used to reduce road accidents
and ensure road safety as well. It is important to highlight that the council can be efficient and
effective if the agencies consider the same as an independent body. This particular council needs
to comprise of a team of experts that will minimize road accidents as well as assist in the daily
activities (Dor.gov.np 2019).

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