Traffic Accidents in India 2024

About this insight

This is Chapter 1A of NCRB’s Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India 2024, built from data reported by State and UT police. In 2024 there were 4,95,256 traffic accidents, which killed 1,99,443 people and injured 4,51,597. Most were road accidents: 4,67,967 cases with 1,75,142 deaths, 0.8% more deaths than in 2023. The death rate was 0.54 per thousand vehicles. Over-speeding caused 61.2% of road accidents and 58.0% of road deaths. Dangerous or careless driving and overtaking caused 26.3% of deaths. Two-wheelers accounted for 48.3% of road deaths, pedestrians 14.7% and cars 13.6%. National Highways are only 2.1% of road length but had 29.8% of road accidents and 34.8% of road deaths. The worst time of day was 18:00–21:00, with 20.8% of road accidents, and the worst month was May, with 8.8%. Rural areas had 59.7% of road accidents, and 7.1% happened near schools or colleges. The chapter also covers deaths on railway tracks and at railway crossings, and traffic accidents in 53 mega cities.

What’s inside

• Overall traffic accidents
• Road accidents and fatalities
• Causes of road accidents
• Time patterns, railway accidents and mega cities