Road Crashes: Funds there, victims yet to get compensation
Although vehicle owners have been giving money for the fund for road accident victims since January, the authorities could not yet start handing out the compensations yet.
The trustee board, formed in October 2021 for the management of the fund, could not start full-fledged operations for several reasons.
The Road Transport and Highways Division on Tuesday even issued a circular regarding changes to be made in the board.
These developments came over two months after the rules of the Road Transport Act-2018 came into force, though the absence of the rules was cited as one of the reasons behind the board, led by Bangladesh Road Transport Authority chairman, being non-functional.
BRTA has received several applications for compensations but could not yet start giving the money to the victims.
Road transport authority sources said the money collected for the fund, along with earlier contributions by vehicle owners, goes directly to the finance ministry.
BRTA recently wrote to the ministry, requesting a transfer of the money to the fund, but it is yet to get a response, the sources said.
BRTA Chairman Nur Mohammad Mazumder yesterday told The Daily Star, "The problems regarding the fund are almost over. We will call a board meeting soon."
Under the Motor Vehicles Ordinance-1983, victims or their family members can seek compensation at the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal for deaths, injuries, and damage caused to properties in road crashes.
But the ordinance was repealed after the Road Transport Act-2018 act came into force in November 2019, narrowing the victims' scope for getting compensation.
In some rare cases, victims file writ petitions with the High Court for compensation.
Hundreds of people are killed and injured in road crashes every year -- a serious cause of concern for the country.
As per Road Transport Act, the government will set up a fund for compensation and treatment, if necessary, for road crash victims, and a trustee board will manage the fund and related works.
On October 10, 2021, the government formed the 12-member trustee board, which could not begin functioning or raise any funds as the rules of the act -- which stipulate how the board will work and the funds be raised -- were not in force.
On December 27 last year, the government finally issued a gazette bringing the rules into effect and outlining the work of the board and the funds.
As per the rules, the family of a person killed in a road crash due to reckless or negligent driving will get at least Tk 5 lakh in compensation.
Those who lose a limb or suffer other forms of life-altering injuries will get Tk 3 lakh each, while the victims who are likely to recover from injuries and return to normal life will get Tk 1 lakh.
Meanwhile, owners of buses, trucks, lorries and semi-trailer trucks will pay Tk 1,500 a year each for the fund, while owners of minibuses, minitrucks, and pickups will give Tk 750; Tk 500 for owners of cars, SUVs and microbuses; and Tk 300 for those of three-wheelers. A motorcycle owner must pay a one-time fee of Tk 1,000, the rules read.
Different authorities, including BRTA mobile courts, district administrations and police, who impose fines under Road Transport Act-2018, are also supposed to contribute to the fund.
BRTA, as per the rules, started collecting the money from early January this year.
Contacted, Prof Tania Haque, of women and gender studies department of Dhaka University and a member of the board, said she last took part in a board meetingaround a year ago.
"I have no idea what happened afterwards," she told this correspondent on March 4.
Another trustee board member, Khondaker Enayet Ullah, also secretary general of Bangladesh Road Transport Owners' Association, said they could not start giving compensation as "they did not get money for the fund".
Another member, Osman Ali, also the general secretary of Bangladesh Road Transport Workers Federation, is skeptical of when they might be able to start handing out the compensations.
Contacted, Nur Mohammad Mazumder said that as per an earlier circular, the BRTA secretary was made an ex-officio member-secretary of the trustee board.
But the government has abolished the "secretary" post from all government agencies and thus, a new circular was issued on Tuesday, making the director (audit and law) of BRTA as the member-secretary of the board, he said.
"This is another reason behind the delay," he said, adding the board will start giving the compensations following the necessary procedures soon.
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