The Rajasthan government on Friday, 4 July 2025, directed the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to conduct a comprehensive road safety audit of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway within 15 days, following a fatal bus-trailer collision in Dausa that killed eight people. The order came during a high-level road safety review meeting chaired by State Chief Secretary V. Srinivas, who declared passenger safety the government's foremost priority.

What the Government Directed

Chief Secretary V. Srinivas instructed NHAI to ensure all surveillance cameras along national highways remain fully operational and to address deficiencies in road signage, lane markings, and safety infrastructure along the expressway corridor. He also directed officials across the state to identify accident-prone locations — commonly termed black spots — and undertake corrective engineering measures within a fixed timeline.

NHAI Chairman Santosh Kumar Yadav, who attended the meeting, assured that the audit would be completed within the stipulated period and that improvements including enhanced signage would be carried out promptly. He also acknowledged the Rajasthan government's proactive stance on road safety.

Out-of-State Buses Under Scrutiny

The meeting flagged a specific compliance concern: buses registered in Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland but operating within Rajasthan without adhering to prescribed bus body safety standards. Chief Secretary Srinivas directed that semi-official letters be sent to the Chief Secretaries of both states seeking corrective action.

He further instructed transport authorities to ensure no vehicle is registered or permitted to operate without thorough inspection and verification against applicable safety standards, stressing that passenger safety cannot be compromised under any circumstance.

Enforcement and Emergency Response Measures

The Transport and Road Safety Department has been tasked with launching special enforcement drives covering installation of reflective tapes on vehicles, verification of compliance with Automotive Industry Standards (AIS) for buses, recovery of pending traffic challan penalties, and strict action against over-speeding vehicles.

To strengthen emergency response, every toll plaza must now have access to ambulances, first-aid facilities, recovery cranes, towing vehicles, and fire brigade support in coordination with the state government. Authorities were also asked to ensure affordable food facilities for commercial vehicle drivers at highway amenity centres, a measure aimed at reducing fatigue-related accidents on long-distance routes.

District-Level Coordination

Chief Secretary Srinivas directed all Divisional Commissioners to convene meetings with District Collectors to review the functioning of district road safety committees and ensure coordinated, on-ground implementation of safety measures. The review meeting was the third consecutive day of such discussions chaired by Srinivas following a spate of recent fatal road accidents across Rajasthan.

The meeting was attended by Director General of Police Rajiv Kumar Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary (Public Works Department) Praveen Gupta, Principal Secretary (Transport) Bhawani Singh Detha, Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Bhaskar Atmaram Sawant, Transport Commissioner Purushottam Sharma, and senior officials from Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland transport departments, among others. With the audit deadline set and enforcement drives imminent, the coming fortnight will test whether Rajasthan's directives translate into measurable safety gains on one of India's busiest expressways.