Can college students make India’s roads safer? SIAM launches National Safety Challenge 2026

Reinforcing its commitment to building a culture of safer mobility among young citizens, the initiative invites undergraduate students across India to develop practical, field-ready solutions to address the country’s pressing road safety challenges.

Recognising college students as powerful agents of change, SIAM seeks to harness their creativity, leadership, and design-thinking capabilities to deliver real-world interventions that can help reduce road accidents and fatalities. The challenge is aligned with national priorities on road safety and aims to inspire youth leadership, foster accountability, and drive innovation with measurable impact.

Commenting on the launch, Prashant K. Banerjee, Executive Director, SIAM, said India loses nearly 485 lives every day to road accidents.

“India’s young minds have the power to drive meaningful change on our roads. The National Road Accident Reduction Challenge 2026 is designed to channel their creativity, problem-solving abilities, and sense of responsibility into practical interventions that can be implemented on the ground. By engaging students as partners in road safety, SIAM aims to nurture a culture of accountability, innovation, and safer mobility across the country,” Banerjee said.

Highlighting Suzuki Motorcycle India’s association with the initiative, Devashish Handa, Executive Officer, Suzuki Motorcycle India Pvt. Ltd. (SMIPL), said road safety remains a key focus of the company’s corporate social responsibility efforts.

“We believe student-led innovation can make a meaningful contribution to safer mobility in India. Through SIAM’s National Road Accident Reduction Challenge 2026, we aim to strengthen road safety awareness among the young generation and encourage practical, on-ground interventions to help reduce road fatalities,” Handa said.

The competition is open to undergraduate students from all recognised institutions across India, with teams comprising two to four students, supported by faculty or institutional endorsement.

Participants are invited to submit ready-to-implement or field-tested ideas across key themes, including user-centric interventions, technology-driven safety solutions, infrastructure improvement, and evaluation and enforcement mechanisms.

Submissions must include a 15–20 slide concept deck, supported by fieldwork, data validation, prototypes, pilot studies, or interviews. Participants may also submit an optional two-minute video or demonstration to support their proposal.

The nomination deadline is January 15, 2026, while the final project submission date is March 1, 2026.