The Centre has constituted the National Road Safety Board under Section 215B of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The board matters because India’s road-fatality burden remains very high, and the new body is intended to provide an institutional platform for road-safety coordination between the Union and state governments.
What happened now
The board was formed on June 29. It is a statutory body with experts and officials from the Union government and state governments. Its formal role is advisory: it is meant to advise the Centre and the states on road safety.
Background and earlier position
The idea of a dedicated national road-safety regulator predates the current board. The Sunder Committee (2007) had recommended a body with stronger functions, including the power to prescribe standards, monitor compliance, conduct safety audits, and coordinate across agencies.
Later, the National Road Safety and Traffic Management Board Bill, 2010 was introduced. That Bill focused mainly on highways and mechanically propelled vehicles. A parliamentary standing committee in 2010 argued that many proposed functions already existed in other institutions and said the Bill would create yet another institution without adequate empowerment.
Related current affairs
- SC frees Kerala Waqf Board from State govt. supervision
- Letters to the Editor (responses to earlier editorial items)
- Supreme Court statement says allegations against sitting judge must follow institutional mechanism
- SC notice to Jharkhand on plea on exam irregularities
- THE GIST (SC ruling on ‘industry’)
- How the SC ruling redefined ‘industry’