KATHMANDU: Between mid-July 2023 and mid-July 2024, 115 people were killed in traffic accidents in the Chitwan region, bringing the fiscal year to a devastating end. Ninety-two men, 19 women, and four children were slain, with the majority of the deaths taking place on roads rather than within streets. Chief of the District Traffic Police Office Suresh Subedi stated that a total of 445 vehicles were engaged in collisions, resulting in 832 injuries.

The East-West Highway, a stretch of Narayangadh-Muglin road, and Prithvi Highway were classified as high-risk locations, with 57 fatalities combined. The Narayangadh-Muglin road segment witnessed 21 fatalities and 151 injuries in 55 events, whilst the East-West Highway recorded 26 deaths and 204 injuries in 96 accidents. On the Prithvi Highway, 18 accidents resulted in 62 injuries and 10 fatalities.

Subedi expressed concern about the ongoing challenge of successfully lowering traffic occurrences, despite multiple measures to minimize accidents. The continuous road safety problems in the Chitwan area were brought to light by 303 incidents involving 663 cars in the previous fiscal year, which left 78 people dead and 581 injured.