Include road safety in school curriculum: Gadkari asks states

New Delhi, Apr 13: Road safety is likely to be part of school curriculum across the country as Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has asked state education boards to introduce this subject in the syllabus.

Road Secretary Vijay Chibber today said the CBSE (Central Board of Secondary Education) has included a chapter on road safety in its syllabus and the minister has urged the states to follow suit.

"The changes in the curriculum of CBSE have been done, and he has written to the states to do similar efforts in their respective boards," he said. When asked whether the Centre will make it compulsory for the states to adopt this proposal, Chibber said, "It can't be made mandatory, it's up to the states to adopt it."

The government is of the view that all schools should make amendments to their curriculum for incorporating a chapter on road safety, which will inculcate the importance of the subject at the primary school level.

"Imparting knowledge and purpose of road safety from the start of the school or at the primary or middle level of education will prove beneficial," he added. Meanwhile, the government is also drafting the Road Transport and Safety Bill which will incorporate global best practices in road safety and management.

The proposed Bill will be in sync with practices in six advanced nations - the US, Canada, Singapore, Japan, Germany and the UK. "We believe that this is an important lacuna (in road safety), and bringing a new legal architecture is our primary responsibility," Chibber added. The bill is likely to be introduced in the second phase of the current Parliament session.

PTI