Bhubaneswar, Sept. 25 -- Road contractors, government engineers and construction firms in Odisha could face criminal prosecution and financial penalties if faulty road design, poor construction or inadequate maintenance leads to the death or disability of a pedestrian, under draft pedestrian safety rules proposed by the state government.

According to the proposed rules, contractors and engineers could face prosecution under Section 198A of the Motor Vehicles Act if faulty construction of roads leads to a pedestrian's death or disability. Besides criminal prosecution, construction firms could face termination of contracts, blacklisting and withholding of payments in such cases. Under Section 198A of the MV Act, there is no provision for i...