KARACHI (Dunya News) – Road accidents in Karachi have claimed the lives of 555 people so far this year, according to data compiled by the police.
Among the deceased are 429 men, 53 women, 54 boys, and 19 girls. The figures highlight the alarming rise in fatalities caused by reckless driving and poor traffic management in the city.
A major cause of these deaths has been collisions involving heavy vehicles. At least 169 people lost their lives due to crashes with heavy vehicles, with 63 deaths caused by trailers, 37 by water tankers, 34 by dumpers, and 35 by buses.
The number of injured in traffic accidents this year has also surged to 8,338, painting a grim picture of road safety in the port city.
Earlier this week, police have taken a two-day remand of a dumper driver involved in an accident which claimed two lives on Rashid Minhas Road two days ago.
The driver identified as Firdous was presented to a magistrate by an investigation officer, who told the court that the driver did not possess Heavy Transport Vehicle (HTV) licence, which is a mandatory document for driving a dumper. He also told the court that the driver had Light Transport Vehicle (LTV) licence, which had expired in 2016.
Police sought his remand to reach out to the owner of the vehicle. The court accepted the police request and granted them a two-day physical remand of the driver.
On Saturday night, three members of a family riding a bike met an accident on Rashid Minhas Road. As a result of the crash, two persons, who were stated to be brother and sister, lost their lives and their father sustained injuries.
The accident involved a dumper, due to which angry mob burnt seven dumpers to vent their anger on the accident.