Prof Madan Mohan Goel, Proponent Needonomics & Former Vice-Chancellor (Thrice)
In an age of rapid urbanization and rising vehicle ownership, road safety has become a pressing concern that calls for moral as well as administrative attention. Needonomics School of Thought (NST) offers a fresh and humane perspective on this issue. It advocates a shift from greed-based to need-based policymaking, urging every citizen to act with ethical responsibility and social consciousness. When applied to the issue of road safety in Haryana, Needonomics reminds us that safety on roads is not just a legal duty but a moral obligation.
Urgency of Road Audits
NST welcomes the Government of Haryana’s decision to introduce Road Safety Audits as an essential step toward minimizing road accidents and fatalities. These audits must not remain symbolic but evolve into comprehensive evaluations that identify deficiencies in design, construction, signage, and traffic flow management. The goal must be to ensure safer, more efficient, and economical movement of people and goods across the state.
Every year, Haryana loses around 1,200 pedestrians and 200 cyclists to road accidents. These numbers are alarming and reflect systemic neglect. While speeding remains a factor, other critical issues deserve equal attention — stray animals on roads, poor drainage, encroachments, and engineering faults in road design. The concept of a road audit, therefore, must include an honest look at these long-ignored realities.
Beyond Blame: Addressing the Root Causes
There is a tendency to blame reckless driving alone for road accidents, but the reality is more complex. NST emphasizes that accidents often occur because of institutional complacency and individual indifference. Roads without footpaths deny basic walking rights, while encroachments in market areas create chaos and endanger pedestrians. The recent directive by the Supreme Court mandating footpaths along roads highlights a truth long ignored — safe mobility begins with safe infrastructure for all, including pedestrians and cyclists.
Equally troubling is the practice of hurried road repairs just before the monsoon. This not only wastes public funds but also exposes deeper inefficiencies in planning and monitoring. Needonomics urges strict accountability in such cases and calls for transparent audits of road construction and maintenance, ensuring quality work instead of seasonal patch-ups.
Ethics on the Road: A Needonomics Mandate
At its core, Needonomics teaches that morality and economics are inseparable. A truly efficient economy is one that values human life over material gain. In this context, road safety becomes a reflection of ethical governance and moral citizenship. Every driver, rider, and pedestrian must realize that following traffic rules is not about avoiding penalties but about protecting lives — including one’s own.
NST proposes the traditional three E’s of road safety — Education, Engineering, and Enforcement -but adds a crucial fourth: Ethics. Without ethical conduct, laws remain ineffective and enforcement reactive. Ethics must become the invisible traffic signal guiding every citizen’s behavior on the road. This moral awakening can only come through awareness campaigns, value-based education, and the consistent example set by public authorities.
Shared Responsibility and Behavioral Change
Road safety is a multi-sectoral challenge requiring cooperation among government departments, local authorities, civil society, and the public. However, the greatest challenge lies in changing human behavior. Despite awareness drives, violations such as over-speeding, drunk driving, and mobile phone use while driving persist. NST holds that behavioral change cannot be achieved through punishment alone; it requires moral motivation and internal discipline.
Educational institutions have a vital role to play here. Road safety education should be integrated into school and college curricula to cultivate what NST calls “Needo-citizenship” — citizens guided by need, not greed; by responsibility, not recklessness. Community-based awareness campaigns, moral education, and youth engagement can make this shift sustainable.
Towards Sustainable and Inclusive Mobility
Needonomics advocates for a human-centric transport policy that balances economic growth with ethical responsibility. Haryana’s vision for zero road fatalities must rest on several interlinked priorities:
- Ensuring adequate and affordable public transport services to reduce private vehicle dependence.
- Addressing urban congestion with scientific traffic management.
- Providing safe infrastructure for pedestrians, cyclists, and differently-abled persons.
- Improving interconnectivity and last-mile transport solutions.
- Promoting electric mobility and smart traffic systems for future sustainability.
- Strengthening health infrastructure, especially trauma and emergency response services.
- Enforcing stricter norms for issuing driving licenses and vehicle fitness certifications.
Each of these goals reflects the essence of Needonomics — prioritizing what is needed for public welfare over what is profitable for private interests.
Collective Moral Responsibility
NST asserts that the responsibility for road safety does not rest solely on the government. It is a shared moral duty. Private construction agencies must ensure quality and safety standards; local authorities must enforce encroachment-free zones; and citizens must uphold traffic rules as part of their civic ethics.
Just as paying taxes is a civic responsibility, following traffic rules is a moral responsibility. Roads are shared spaces of trust — breaking that trust endangers everyone. Hence, Needonomics calls for a renewed social contract: the Needo-Moral Code of the Road, based on awareness, accountability, and compassion.
Conclusion:
The vision of zero road accidents in Haryana can only be realized when moral consciousness complements material development. The Needonomics approach reminds us that roads are not merely physical structures but living spaces where human conduct decides the difference between safety and tragedy. By promoting ethical behavior, ensuring quality infrastructure, and enforcing need-based planning, Haryana can transform its roads from sites of risk into pathways of responsibility. Road safety, viewed through the lens of Needonomics, becomes more than a policy—it becomes a philosophy of care, restraint, and shared humanity. Safe roads begin with safe minds, and safe minds are shaped when every individual realizes that protecting life on the road is not just an act of compliance, but an expression of moral civilization.
