Traffic Police to launch helmet awareness

KARACHI: The Traffic Police with collaboration of Sindh Home Department will launch a 'motorcycle helmet wearing campaign'in Karachi from Nov 18.

An official associated with the campaign told APP here on Friday, the oil marketing companies are also being involved as most of the awareness will be based at the gasoline stations where the volunteers will be available along with the Traffic Police officers to convince the motorcyclists about the importance of helmet.

"All the petrol pumps will be part of the campaign," the source said. The campaign will continue for 10-days and later will be followed by 'friendly' enforcement drive by the Traffic Police.

The campaign is being launched in connection with the report of Road Injury Surveillance Project of the Road Injury Research and Prevention Centre of Jinnah Post-Graduate Medical Centre, Karachi.

The Centre at JPMC was established in 2006 by the Federal Ministry of Health after observing the high road accidents in the mega city.

The projects objectives include quantify and assess severity of road traffic accidents, magnitude and the gravity of the problem and assess pattern and behaviour of accidents on major arteries.

The data in this regard is continued to be collected at the five selected trauma centres 24 hours a day and 7 days a week involving JPMC, Civil Hospital, Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, Liaquat National Hospital and Aga Khan Hospital.

The data showed that the maximum cases come to the JPMC with the AKU having the least number. JPMC and Civil Hospital being the largest government hospitals in Karachi receive the largest number of RTI (Road Traffic Incident) victims.

It further stated that males comprise a majority 90 percent of the RTIs while the females comprise only 10 percent.

Research further showed that 60 percent of the RTI cases are related to motorcycles or 12,000 per annum while rest of the cases i.e. 20,000 to 25,000 cases per annum RTIs pertain to cars, buses and trucks etc.

The RTI related to motorcycles include 90 percent those who do not wear helmet and 10 percent those who wear helmet, the research data further showed.

Copyright APP (Associated Press of Pakistan), 2011