New Age | Only 2.58% of road accident victims in Bangladesh received compensation in 2 years

Since the scheme was introduced about two years ago, only 566 road accident victims and their families have received compensation, according to government data.

According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, from January 2023 to October 6 this year, 9,216 people were killed and another 12,689 injured in road accidents.

From January 1, 2023, when the compensation scheme began, to October 6 this year, just 1,940 claims were made to the board of trustees, out of a total of 21,905 deaths and injuries.

Based on the results of the investigation, the families of only 483 dead and 83 injured have so far received compensation – only 2.58 percent of the total number of road accident victims.

The victims and their families have received compensation of Tk 25.29 crore so far, and till October 3, there was Tk 220.98 crore in the compensation fund.

Government data differs significantly from that of various international and local non-governmental organizations, as experts say many road accidents go unreported.

Four years after the enactment of the Road Transport Act 2018, the government on December 27, 2022 issued a circular finalizing the Road Transport Rules 2022 and on the same day, a board of trustees was formed to manage the financial assistance fund for payment of compensation to transport companies. victims and heirs of deceased victims of road accidents.

In January 2023, applications for compensation began, and on October 19 of the same year, activities began to issue compensation checks.

According to the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority, up to October 6 this year, 1,940 applications were submitted to the board of trustees and 1,835 to the standing inquiry committees for investigation.

Till October 6, the committees had submitted reports on 654 applications and Tk 25.29 crore had been issued as compensation to 566 victims and their families.

However, contrary to the BRTA data, statistics released by the Bangladesh Passenger Welfare Association show that from January 2023 to September this year, a total of 12,873 people were killed and 22,805 injured in road accidents.

Bangladesh Passenger Welfare Association is a non-governmental organization that produces road accident statistics based on media reports.

The World Health Organization estimates the number of road traffic fatalities in Bangladesh to be 21,316 in 2015, 24,944 in 2018 and 31,578 in 2021.

However, Bangladesh Police data showed 2,376 deaths in 2015, 2,635 deaths in 2018 and 5,084 deaths in 2021.

BRTA Director of Audit and Legal Mohammad Kamrul Islam Chowdhury told New Age that most people are not yet aware of the compensation scheme.

They are now focusing on an information campaign within the board of directors and the foundation, he continued.

“A plan is also being considered to extend the period for filing a claim for compensation after any road accident, which is now 30 days,” he said, noting that since September this year, BRTA district offices have been receiving applications that were previously received by BRTA district offices . BRTA headquarters only.

BRTA Chairman Mr. Yesin is also Chairman of the Board of Trustees.

On October 17, he told New Age that they were trying to speed up the board’s activities to distribute more compensation.

The compensation packages as per the law are as follows: The family of the victim of a road accident will get a maximum of 5 lakhs, a person who has lost any vital part of the body or suffered serious injuries in a road accident will get a maximum of 3 lakhs, and a person who is seriously injured in a road accident with a chance of returning to normal life through treatment, will receive a maximum of Tk 1 lakh.

The 2018 law also provides that within 30 days of the incident, victims’ families and survivors will be able to apply to the board of trustees for compensation.

The Motor Transport Act 2018 was enacted following the death of two students on July 29, 2018, which was reportedly caused by careless driving.

To finance the financial assistance fund, the rules mention five sources with a fixed subscription of tokens: annual Tk 1,500 for bus, truck, covered van and tractor, Tk 750 for minibus, mini-truck and pick-up, Tk 500 for passenger car, jeep and minibus. and Tk 300 for three-wheelers and other vehicles and Tk 1,000 at a time for motorcycles.