Jammu, January 22, 2026 : Nearly 3,700 people have lost their lives and over 29,000 others have been injured in more than 20,000 road accidents across Jammu and Kashmir since June 2022, a senior government official said on Thursday.
The grim figures were revealed during a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo to review the implementation of road safety measures recommended by the Supreme Court. Officials said the majority of fatalities and accidents occurred on national and major highways, particularly in the districts of Jammu, Kathua, Udhampur and Rajouri.
Emphasising a data-driven approach, the Chief Secretary underscored the need for extensive use of GIS-based analysis to identify vulnerable and accident-prone stretches.
“Such identification will allow focused technological and physical interventions, especially in hilly districts, to significantly reduce road accidents,” Dulloo said.
Briefing the meeting, Transport Department Secretary Avny Lavasa said that since the launch of the i-RAD portal in June 2022, a total of 20,135 road accidents involving 32,819 persons have been reported in the Union Territory. These incidents resulted in 3,688 fatalities and 29,131 grievous or minor injuries.
Data analysis showed that most accidents occurred between 3 pm and 9 pm, with rash driving and over-speeding accounting for nearly 50 per cent of mishaps in 2025.
Sharing enforcement data, Lavasa said the department issued 40,197 challans in 2024 and 52,543 challans in 2025, collecting fines of ₹10.15 crore and ₹15.88 crore, respectively. Key violations included riding without helmets, not wearing seat belts, mobile phone use while driving, over-speeding and jumping red lights.
In 2025 alone, authorities seized 1,528 vehicles, suspended 1,641 driving licences, blacklisted 10,439 vehicles, cancelled 1,192 registration certificates, and revoked 300 route permits, he added.
Inspector General of Police (Traffic) M. Suleman informed the meeting about the functioning of surveillance cameras and traffic signal systems in Jammu and Srinagar. He said the Traffic Police issued 14,92,591 e-challans in 2025, 15,03,901 in 2024, and 12,36,380 in 2023. Fines collected amounted to ₹85.16 crore in 2023 and ₹145.12 crore in 2025, while 15,947 vehicles were seized in 2025 for violations of the Motor Vehicles Act.
According to an official spokesperson, the Chief Secretary directed authorities to leverage traffic data for targeted safety interventions, enforce strict punitive action against habitual violators, and ensure engineering corrections on dangerous road stretches.
Road construction agencies, including the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), Public Works Department (PWD) and Border Roads Organisation (BRO), were asked to brief on the removal of identified accident black spots. Dulloo also reviewed the installation of safety signage and speed-limiting devices in school buses.
