At least 5,619 students were killed in road accidents over the past five and a half years, from 2019 to June 2024. Among them, 611 students were killed in road crashes in six months till June this year.
Road Safety Foundation (RSF) disclosed the finding at a press conference titled Student Fatalities in Road Accidents: Statistics and Analysis held at the RSF office in the capital on Saturday, marking the Mirsharai Tragedy Day.
Mirsharai Tragedy Day is locally observed in memory of the 45 people, including 42 students, who died when a pickup truck carrying them overturned into a pond beside the road in Chittagongs Mirsharai on July 11, 2011. The students were returning from the Bangabandhu-Bangamata Gold Cup football tournament at Mirsharai Stadium.
The report mentioned that 2,641 victims, aged between 5 and 17, were from schools and madrasas, representing 47 per cent of the total student fatalities. Meanwhile, 2,978 victims, aged between 18 and 25, were from colleges and universities, making up 53 per cent.
During the press conference, the RSF identified several reasons for student fatalities in road accidents, including faulty roads and unsafe vehicles, a lack of knowledge about safe road usage, and a tendency among students to ride motorcycles recklessly.
The foundation made several recommendations to prevent such accidents. These included prohibiting underage individuals from riding motorcycles, strictly enforcing road safety laws, organising road safety campaigns in educational institutions, introducing road safety topics in exams, banning unsafe vehicles, ensuring safety measures on roads near educational institutions, and raising public awareness about road safety.
