Union Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday took a witty jibe at the citizens of India and their disregard for following traffic rules and regulations. During an interaction at the inaugural edition of the HPCL Presents Times Drive Auto Summit & Awards 2025, Gadkari said that everyone in India considers themselves an 'Olympic-level player' with the way they cross roads through traffic, jump signals, and refuse to follow safety protocols.
Nitin Gadkari said, "There is also an enforcement problem related to human behaviour. There's no fear or respect for laws. They see a red signal and drive through it. Every citizen of India is an Olympic standard player."
"Women cross roads with a child tucked under their arm. I said, make such a tall divider that no one can jump over it to cross. It's the same thing with people talking on phones while driving. They don't stop at signals or wear helmets. I have made a decision now that when a two-wheeler is sold, two helmets will be provided with it. People are not dying as much in riots or fights or COVID, they die on the road," he added.

Nitin Gadkari on road accidents in India

He also spoke about his efforts to curb road accidents in India and admitted that he had not been entirely successful. "This is one sector for which I want to apologise for. I have made several efforts to curb road accidents in the last 10 years, but they have not been successful yet," he said.
"A staggering 66 per cent of the fatalities have been recorded in the 18-45 year age group. 10,000 children lose their lives in these accidents," he added.
Nearly 1.80 lakh people lost their lives in road accidents in 2024. Of these, 30,000 fatalities were due to not wearing helmets, according to the government.