National Road Safety Council (NRSC) has formed two committees, one comprising three ministers, to recommend the ways on preventing road accidents in the country and implementing the Road Transport Act.
Former Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan, also a labour leader, has been made head of the 15-member body formed to bring discipline in the transport sector and check road crashes.
Three ministers - home, law and railways-- have been made members of the committee which is to give recommendations on implementation of the RTA.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader disclosed these while briefing journalists after a nearly two-hour closed-door meeting at the auditorium of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority on Sunday.
"Both the committees will submit reports in 14 working days with the recommendations of what to do for bringing discipline in the streets,' said the minister, also the ruling party's secretary general.
Admitting that controlling road accidents is a major challenge for the government, the minister said the government has given due importance to the matter.
He said the high profile committee on the RTA will work on the ways and means to implement the act through rules and scope of considering the demands raised by different quarters before the election and in context of the present situation.
The apex body comprising members of both government agencies and private sectors, representatives of transport sector and civil society members sat after nearly one and a half years amid goring concern for increasing number of road accidents across the country.
Last NRSC meeting was held on November 12, 2017 approving the National Road Safety Strategic Action Plan with the target to reduce road accidents in the country to 50 percent by the year 2020.
Ministers, state ministers, secretaries of different ministries, including home, railways, shipping and heads of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, Highway Police, Roads and Highways Department, Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority, BRTA, Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation, Dhaka North City Corporation attended the 26th meeting of the NRSC.
The minister answering to a question said revolutionary development activities have been carried out in the country during the two tenures of the government to set up metro rails, tunnels and elevated expressways, considering traffic situation.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, Chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on RTB Ministry M Ekabbar Hossain, former State Minister M Moshiur Rahman Ranga also attended the meeting.
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