‘6 Deaths Per Hour’: India's National Highways Seeing Highest Daily Fatalities In 2025 Since 2022

Last Updated:July 24, 2025, 06:30 IST

The government informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that 26,770 road accident fatalities have been reported on national highways up to June in 2025

The House was also informed that the National Ambulance Helpline Number 102 is available to all road users. (Representational image: CNN-News18)

The national highways in India continue to witness a grim toll in 2025, with close to 150 people dying daily on average—about six deaths every hour—according to an analysis of official data.

The ministry of road transport and highways informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that 26,770 road accident fatalities have been reported on national highways up to June in 2025.

The daily average in 2023 was 147 deaths, and in 2024 it was 144. The total deaths reported in the year 2023 were 53,372, which dropped to 52,609 in 2024.

The ministry publishes “Road Accidents in India" annually based on data received from states and union territories. The report has been published for calendar years up to 2022, and the reports beyond that are awaited.

Odisha MP Sasmit Patra had asked the ministry about the increase in road accident deaths across national highways.

Gadkari informed the House that the eDAR (electronic Detailed Accident Report) portal has been developed, which is a central repository for reporting, management, and analysis of road accident data across the country. The numbers for 2023, 2024, and the current year are as per data entered by states and UTs on the eDAR portal as of July 17.

Analysis of the data from MoRTH’s annual report since 2019 shows that the only year when there was some relief from deaths on national highways was 2020—clearly due to mobility restrictions during Covid lockdowns. The daily and hourly averages fell to 125 and five, the lowest across the seven-year period.

As shown in the graph, the average hourly deaths between 2019 and 2025 have remained about six, except in 2020, while the daily deaths ranged between 125 and 152.

In another reply to Punjab MP Ashok Mittal, Gadkari said that Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances have been deployed on certain stretches of national highways in light of the recommendations of the concerned district road safety committees, in addition to the ambulance services provided by various state governments.

The House was also informed that the National Ambulance Helpline Number 102 is available to all road users.

“In addition, NHAI has deployed a dispatch system based on a call centre to monitor the operations of these ambulances following distress calls. The average response time after intimation of the incident to 1033 is generally targeted to be around 20-30 minutes, depending on the location of the distress call with the ambulance," Gadkari added.

Nivedita Singh

Nivedita Singh is a data journalist and covers the Election Commission, Indian Railways and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. She has nearly seven years of experience in the news media. She tweets @nived...Read More

Nivedita Singh is a data journalist and covers the Election Commission, Indian Railways and Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. She has nearly seven years of experience in the news media. She tweets @nived...

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