The government’s disbursement of Tk 213.56 crore to victims of road accidents over the past three years is certainly a positive. It is the least that should be done for families who have lost loved ones or suffered injuries due to the chaos on our roads.
What must simultaneously be ensured is that these funds are being utilized properly, and reach the people they need to, and are distributed fairly and equitably.
However, while compensation certainly provides relief, it does not address the root of the problem. What Bangladesh has long needed is not just payouts but genuine reform to bring about road safety.
Year after year, thousands of lives are lost to reckless driving, unfit vehicles, overcrowded highways, and weak enforcement. The carnage is predictable, preventable, and yet it continues.
Financial compensation simply cannot erase grief, nor can it substitute for the reforms that would significantly prevent these tragedies in the first place.
The government must confront this reality. By now, everybody knows the measures that need to be taken seriously, from stricter enforcement of traffic laws to mandatory fitness checks for vehicles and above all else, accountability.
We also need more investment in infrastructure that can handle peak travel and awareness campaigns that remind citizens that haste on the road can cost lives.
None of this will be possible without the political will to break the cycle of negligence, something that has sadly been missing for what appears to be decades at this stage.
Bangladesh must shift from managing the aftermath of accidents to preventing them altogether. That is what will truly be worth celebrating.
