The Centre is planning to implement a bamboo-made fence along highways to prevent cattle from crossing the road and causing accidents, Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said on Wednesday. The fence will be 1.20 meters high and will be installed on section 23 of National Highway-30 as a comprehensive solution, the minister said. “This installation will serve as a demonstration before the esteemed visit of Shri @narendramodiJi, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, to Chhattisgarh.”
Gadkari said the cattle fence, constructed using bamboo, offers a fully effective and environmentally friendly solution. “The bamboo is treated with creosote oil and coated with HDPE (High-Density Poly Ethylene), making it a stronger alternative to steel,” he said in a tweet while sharing the pictures of the fence.
The fence has a fire rating of class 1, ensuring safety, and aligns with the principles of self-reliant India, which aims to make all highways sustainable and minimize harm to wildlife and cattle, the minister said.
In March this year, a 200-meter-long bamboo crash barrier had been installed on a highway connecting Chandrapur and Yavatmal districts in Maharashtra, which Gadkari termed as the “world’s first” such exercise. The minister called the barrier a “remarkable achievement” for the country and its bamboo sector.
Gadkari said the barrier underwent rigorous testing at various government-run institutions, such as the National Automotive Test Tracks (NATRAX) in Pithampur, Indore, and was rated as Class 1 during the Fire Rating Test conducted at the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) in Roorkee.
Additionally, Gadkari said, the barrier had also been accredited by the Indian Road Congress. The recycling value of bamboo barriers is 50-70 per cent, while that of steel barriers is 30-50 per cent, the minister added.
In December 2022, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways said that as per the World Health Organization’s Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018, road traffic injury (RTI) is the eighth leading cause of death globally for all age groups and India accounts for almost 11 per cent of all crash-related deaths.
As per Stockholm Declaration, India is committed to reducing the number of road traffic deaths and injuries to 50 per cent by 2030.
The ministry informed that it had formulated a multi-pronged strategy to address the issue of road safety. One of the actions the ministry underlined is the high priority on the identification and rectification of black spots (accident-prone spots) on National Highways.
