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NEW DELHI, India - An Indian woman, who lost her daughter in a road crash, has taken to regulating traffic at the accident site to prevent further loss of life.
Dorris Francis controls traffic at the crash-prone junction in Ghaziabad, near New Delhi, where her 17-year-old daughter Niki was killed in 2008 after a speeding car hit their auto-rickshaw, the Times of India reported.
The grieving mother took up her "post" several years ago to ensure nobody else suffered Niki's fate
'BENEFIT SOCIETY AT LARGE'
She is not working for the traffic police and has no powers to penalise violations but manages traffic every morning, wielding a wooden stick and stern demeanour.
She says there has only been one fatal crash since she took charge and added: "While I have life within me, I will continue with the work. I will ensure that not a single life is lost to rash driving. If God has given me the gift of life, it should be used for the benefit of society at large."
Francis (57), has come in for praise from locals and police for taking on her stressful duties despite her age and battling ailments, including hypertension.
India is notorious for having the most fatalities of any country. An average of 135 000 people die during or after road incidents, according to government data.
Which, as it happens, is nowhere near the road-death rate in South Africa: one person in 1250 is likely to be killed on South African roads in a given year. The figure in hectic India, with terrible roads, congested cities, few freeways is about one in every 11 000.
