Hardly any day passes now without news of tragic road accidents. Apart from claiming valuable lives, the road accidents have other serious consequences which are long lasting. The way lives are cut short in road accidents render irreparable losses to the near and dear ones of the dead. The painful memories and the lasting wounds in hearts cause a lifelong restlessness, and at times a feeling of nothingness. The most agonising part of these road accidents is when we see young ones lying dead in a pool of blood. The parents who have left no stone unturned for their children are suddenly tested to brave the reality they had never imagined of. They may continue to live but their life does not remain the same.
It is more than important to access the causes of accidents and at the same time look for some possible remedies. To be sure, there is no single factor that causes accidents but I do not hesitate to attribute many of the road accidents to carelessness and irresponsibility. I have seen the young taking undue pride while driving at very high speeds on bikes and cars. This calamitous passion for driving at a speed of 80 and 90 km/hour deprives them of their sense of responsibility towards themselves and their dear ones. The stunts the young perform on bikes epitomise their carelessness. The consequences of this careless, haphazard and irresponsible behaviour are fatal. How many lives have been cut short, how many are disabled, the number is difficult to arrive at. At times, given such level of carelessness, I cannot decide whether it is just carelessness or is it an ‘unintentional suicide’.
I am not an expert on driving but my common sense says that even seemingly little things and precautions sometimes prevent a big tragedy. For our protection it is often advised to buckle up the seatbelt and put on the helmet but rarely do we heed such advices. Fearing police action, some at times adhere to such precautionary measures but when there is no fear, then there is nothing to care about. We must understand that there is no guarantee that an accident will give us a chance to learn, for there are examples when people could not live even for a minute after meeting with an accident. Isn’t it therefore desirable that we take all precautionary measures in driving so that the chance of accident is minimised as much as possible?
Of course we cannot control everything but can’t we abandon our carelessness and embrace responsibility towards ourselves and our near and dear ones? Let us be sure that many accidents and tragedies can be prevented and damages minimised if we strictly adhere to the precautionary measures in driving. Apart from driving at an optimum speed and putting on seatbelts and helmet, there are other prerequisite measures for a safe drive, such as avoiding distractions, being more cautious in poor driving conditions, taking a break if necessary, following traffic rules, etc. These safety measures are meant for our protection and every individual must deem it a responsibility to act with responsible behaviour. Like in many other situations, individual behaviour matters on roads. We have a choice between utmost care, caution and responsibility on the one hand and regret, loss and death on the other.
Life once lost never comes back. We cannot and must not learn only from our own mistakes for there are some mistakes that do not provide a second chance. It is time that we learn from the examples around us and mould our behaviour accordingly. Our life is a rich gift from our God and we must value it. It is important not only for us but for our loved ones as well. Much is under our control and many things can be changed for better. Let us take pride in responsibility instead of fatal carelessness. Let us take a pledge to choose responsibility over loss and precaution over regret. Let us be sure that our behaviour makes and will make a lot of difference.

Rukhsana Gillani and Muneeb Afzal