One more life has been lost to a familiar script on Jammu and Kashmir’s roads. In Chowki Choura, Akhnoor, a car skidded off the highway and plunged into a gorge. Raju Sharma of Kalakote died; Roshan Lal of Kangri Beripattan and Tushar Raina, also of Kalakote, were injured and shifted to the hospital. The police have registered a case and begun an investigation. But beyond the formality of FIRs and routine probes lies a larger, uncomfortable truth: such crashes are not isolated “accidents” — they are the inevitable outcome of a broken road safety regime. Every few days, we read the same phrases: vehicle skids off the road, falls into a gorge, one killed, two injured. The locations change — Ramban, Doda, Poonch, Akhnoor — but the pattern does not. Treacherous stretches without proper crash barriers, worn-out road surfaces, poor signage, unchecked over-speeding and overloaded vehicles, and a near-total absence of emergency response infrastructure together turn our highways into corridors of risk. The UT’s response remains stubbornly reactive. After each tragedy, there is a flurry of statements, orders for “inquiries”, and assurances of “strict action”. Then the system moves on, leaving grieving families to pick up the pieces. How many such cases have actually led to structural changes, redesign of black spots, installation of guardrails, strict enforcement drives sustained over months, or accountability fixed on negligent officials and operators? The public has seen little evidence. Akhnoor and the adjoining stretches have long been known for dangerous curves and vulnerable points. It is legitimate to ask: what measures have the authorities and traffic planners taken over the years to make these stretches safer? Are road safety audits being carried out regularly? Are recommendations implemented, or simply filed away? Why are crash barriers and rumble strips still missing or inadequate at many known accident-prone spots? Equally culpable is the culture of impunity on the roads. Licensing norms are weakly enforced, fitness certificates are often a mere formality, and routine traffic checking is reduced to sporadic naka points rather than an integrated, technology-backed system. Until reckless driving, overloading, and violations invite swift and certain penalties, repeated calls for “awareness” will ring hollow. This tragedy should be treated as a test case: identify the exact causes, fix the spot, publish the findings, and time-bound a wider safety plan for all known black spots across J&K. Road safety is not an optional concern; it is a fundamental governance obligation. The choice is stark: either we build safer roads and systems, or we continue to write the same news, with different names and faces, from the edge of yet another gorge.
