Jaipur, Nov. 6 -- About an 8% hike was seen in drunk driving cases in Rajasthan till September this year compared to last year, showed official data, after the deaths of at least 28 people in two separate road accidents only a day apart earlier this week. The data, from the Police Headquarters, showed at least 40,715 cases in which the driver was found under the influence of alcohol while driving a vehicle in 2024, while the corresponding figure is already 43,788 till September in 2025, up by 7.55%. Although a district-wise break-up of this data was not immediately available, police said that the maximum has been traced in Jaipur and Jodhpur. A speeding dumper truck ploughed into 17 vehicles near Loha Mandi in Jaipur's Harmada area on Monday afternoon, killing 12 people and injuring at least 10 others, police said. DCP Jaipur (West), Hanuman Prasad Meena, said, "The incident took place at around 1 pm on Monday. Prima facie, the dumper driver was under the influence of alcohol. We have detained him while his vehicle was also seized. Bodies have been sent for an autopsy while the injured ones are undergoing treatment." According to the officials, the dumper first hit a two-wheeler near a petrol pump on Loha Mandi road following which locals started chasing it. "Meanwhile, the dumper driver, Kalyan Meena, increased the speed to take road number 14 towards a national highway. During the course, its brake failed due to overspeeding and started crashing into other vehicles for nearly 300 metres," said the Harmara SHO, Uday Singh. The development also came only a day after 15 people were killed while two others were injured when a traveller bus collided with a trailer parked on the Bharatmala highway (NH-15) in Rajasthan's Phalodi on Sunday evening, police said. Jodhpur police commissioner, Om Prakash Paswan, who reached the spot to monitor the situation, said, "The incident took place at around 6.30 pm on Sunday. The bus was carrying nearly 18-20 passengers, all residents of Jodhpur's Soorsagar. They were returning from Bikaner's Kolayat after a visit to Kapil Muni Ahsrama. At least 15 have been killed while two others were injured who have been referred to Jodhpur city hospital in a serious condition through a green corridor." As per the latest NCRB report which was published earlier this year, Rajasthan ranked seventh in the country with 24,694 road accident cases in 2023. The state was also ninth in India with 7,179 accident cases particularly on national highways with also the fifth highest number of casualties at 4,172. "While the lack of awareness among the people about the road safety and traffic rules lead to such fatal cases, the poor condition of the roads, lack of monitoring on the condition of the vehicles, and also the slow progress on the blackspots are major reasons behind these accidents that the government need to focus on," said a senior police officer from the traffic management unit. Commenting on the development, the road safety experts, however, demanded for a slew of reformation in the road safety policies and actions followed by the Transport Department, PwD, and NHAI. The executive director of Muskan Foundation (an NGO that works on road safety issues) in Jaipur, Neha Khullar said, "Every time after an accident, the police are majorly blamed for mismanagement. But it is important to understand that police are least responsible for the entire road safety system, formulating policies, and implementing them. Their job might be to monitor in several city and rural roads, but it is the Motor Vehicle Inspectors from the Transport Department who need to keep a check on the registration of a vehicle, license of a driver, overloading, fire safety audits etc. There is a huge gap that led to a recent accident in Jaisalmer in which 28 people were burnt alive when a bus caught fire due to a short circuit."...