No cheers: Telangana tops in drunken driving cases

HYDERABAD: Despite strict measures, including imprisonment for motorists caught driving under the influence of alcohol, Telangana has found itself on top of the charts in drunken driving (DD) cases. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data for 2020, the state recorded as many as 1,328 DD cases last year.

Worse, it also stood second in India — only behind Uttar Pradesh — in the number of deaths caused due to DD.
The statistics comes as blow, specially with the three police commisionerates running a huge campaign against drunk driving in Hyderabad and elsewhere.
Officials admitted to the need for tightening the noose around drunken driving. “For the last few years we have been laying special focus on this to contain drunken driving mishaps through extensive DD checking. There is a need to intensify this in the districts and along highways,” an official said.
While the northern state reported 541 deaths caused due to 1,039 DD road accidents, the count of fatalities in Telangana was 343.
Incidentally, the state saw a dip in overall road accident cases, with a 11.11% decrease in 2020 over 2019. It recorded 19,172 accidents last year with 6,882 deaths. In Hyderabad, 254 persons died in 2,064 road accidents through the year.
According to NCRB data, overspeeding stood out as the primary reason for accidents in Telangana with as many as 14,978 mishaps being registered only due to overspeeding. While 5,460 people died in such cases, 498 pedestrians were killed in varoous road accidents, the data added.
“The drop in overall count of road accidents is an encouraging sign,” said a senior official for Telangana police.