Last 4 Weeks: Supreme Court Warns It Will Frame Pedestrian Safety Rules If Govt Fails To Act

Moneylife Digital Team 04 August 2025

Economy & Nation

The Supreme Court has given the Union and state governments a final four-week deadline to frame comprehensive guidelines for safe, obstruction-free and disability-friendly footpaths, warning that it will step in to issue its own directions if the authorities fail to act.

While hearing a long-pending petition on pedestrian rights last week, a bench of justice JB Pardiwala and justice R Mahadevan made the observation. “If the Union is unable to frame the guidelines by the next date of hearing, this Court, with the assistance of the amicus, will proceed to do the needful,” the bench stated.

Failure to provide proper footpaths, the bench says, undermines public safety, infringes constitutional rights and disproportionately affects vulnerable groups, including the elderly and people with disabilities.

The order follows the Court’s 14 May 2025 ruling recognising the right to unobstructed footpaths as part of the fundamental right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. That judgment drew upon the landmark Olga Tellis vs Bombay Municipal Corporation decision, which first established pedestrian access as a constitutional right.

During the hearing, amicus curiae Gaurav Agarwal told the court that a committee headed by former Supreme Court judge justice Abhay Manohar Sapre is ready to monitor implementation once the guidelines are in place. He pointed to alarming data indicating that pedestrians account for nearly 19.5% of road accident deaths in India.

Mr Agarwal noted that road-owning agencies, from the national highways authority of India (NHAI) to state governments and municipal bodies, are bound to follow existing standards such as those issued by the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) and the Union ministry of urban affairs’ harmonised guidelines, which include detailed specifications for accessible footpaths.

The bench stressed that proper pedestrian infrastructure must be accessible to persons with disabilities and kept free from encroachments, noting that absence of safe walkways forces people onto roads, significantly increasing the risk of accidents.

Additional solicitor general (ASG) Vikramjit Banerjee, representing the Union government, confirmed that the draft guidelines are under preparation. The Court, however, made it clear that no further extensions would be granted.

The judges also reminded the government of its obligation to set up a national road safety board within six months, in line with its earlier order.

The Court has directed states and Union Territories to align their rules with national and IRC standards to ensure uniformity and safety.

Comments

User

karan.r.gandhi

4 months ago

A thread should be started on X with photos of the different types of obstructions on footpaths. The worst culprits are builders who raise their compound above the main road and then build a ramp / slope above the pavement for cars.

vs.iyer316

4 months ago

What is footpath. This term needs to be forgotten. There is no proper road and thinking of footpath will only be a dream. If footpath is there also, it is meant for bikers when there is a traffic jam. I am staying in Kalher. Leave apart footpath, the roads are slso not safe. There is always heavy traffic and travelling is a nightmare. What will happen next moment is unpredictable. Even this was brought to Traffic Office, Thane, but seems it has gone to deaf ears. The area is controlled by locals and absolutely there is no discipline. Even a fire engine cannot enter the village in case of any fire as the roads are very narrow. This is not vikasit Bharat.