368 killed in road accidents in June

At least 368 people were killed and 518 others were injured in 358 road accidents across the country in June, a passengers' welfare body said yesterday.

For June, the death toll increased by 57.34 percent compared to that of May. In the meantime, the number of accidents and injured persons increased by 56.14 and 43.82 percent respectively, Jatri Kalyan Samity said in its monthly report, prepared based on reports published in national and regional newspapers and online news portals.

Mozammel Hoque Chowdhury, secretary general of the welfare body, explained the sudden increase in the numbers saying, "In May, public transport movement was off due to the government enforced shutdown to contain the coronavirus. This is why the number of accidents and deaths were comparatively low for the month."

Additionally, he highlighted the lack of accountability of road safety agencies and their unabated corruption as some of the reasons behind the increase in statistics.

The report said at least 15 people were killed and four others were injured in 20 railway track accidents in June.

In waterways, at least 45 people died, 60 were injured, and 10 went missing in 17 incidents, the report added.