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Santhosh Chandran
DOHA
QATAR has the lowest casualty rate in road accidents in the Gulf region, the Director General of Traffic Directorate and Vice Chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC) Major General Mohammed Saad al Kharji said on Sunday.
Talking to Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of an event to commemorate the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDR), Kharji said:"The average accident rate in the country has declined by 5.4 percent compared to last year. Now, Qatar boasts of having the lowest number of casualties in road accidents in the region, thanks to our traffic awareness campaigns and road safety measures undertaken in association with different government entities".
Kharji inaugurated the commemoration of World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (WDR) held under the slogan 'Roads have stories' at the General Directorate of Traffic Auditorium.
The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims takes place on the third Sunday of November every year as the appropriate acknowledgment of victims of road mishaps and their families.
Kharji stressed that on the occasion of WDR, all must remember the millions of victims of road accidents in the world and the suffering of their families and friends, in addition to the huge cost that they incur in the treatment of the injuries resulting from these accidents.
The event also seeks to appreciate the roles of the police, ambulance, civil defence and others in accidents and its prevention.
Director of the Public Health Department at the Ministry of Public Health Sheikh Dr Mohammed bin Hamad al Thani pointed out that Qatar accords priority to prevention of accidents and, therefore, launched the National Traffic Safety Strategy to reduce road accident mortality rate in 2017 by 75 percent compared to 2006.
In his speech, Assistant Undersecretary for Land Transport at Ministry of Transport& Communications Rashid Taleb al Nabit said that traffic accidents are transcontinental and are in a steady increase despite the efforts exerted by countries to reduce them.
"WHO figures indicate that nearly 5 million people could be saved from road accidents during the period 2011-2020 by taking the necessary steps to improve road safety", Nabit added.
The events also featured lectures on traffic safety by senior officials of Traffic Department and screening of a film on common traffic violations, including the practice of following ambulances and blocking intersections by certain motorists.
The event was attended by representatives of the General Directorate of Traffic, the National Traffic Safety Committee, the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Transport and Communications and Qatar Transportation and Traffic Safety Center at Qatar University.
On the sidelines of the World Day of Remembrance for Road Accident Victims, an awareness exhibition was also opened at General Directorate of Traffic with the participation of different agencies involved in the traffic safety campaign.
Officials of Public Works Authority 'Ashghal', Qatar Charity and Qatar Red Crescent Society also attended the event.
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19/11/2018
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