Lucknow, Aug. 27 -- The Uttar Pradesh transport department has rolled out the Centre's "Sadak Suraksha Mitra (SSM)" initiative to engage trained youth volunteers in road-safety interventions.In a letter issued on Tuesday, transport commissioner BN Singh directed all district magistrates to ensure time-bound implementation of the programme through the District Road Safety Committees (DRSCs).The initiative, launched by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) in collaboration with the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, aims to mobilise youth via the MYBharat platform. In the first phase, 100 districts across the country-including 28 in Uttar Pradesh-have been identified."Under the programme, volunteers aged 18-28 years, with no pending traffic challans, will be selected and trained. General volunteers will undergo a one-week training covering first aid, while civil-engineering graduates will receive a 15-day road-safety audit training," Singh said. They will support crash-scene coordination, black-spot studies, awareness campaigns and field surveys, using tools such as eDAR and Sanjaya. Outstanding performers will be recognised with certificates and Good Samaritan awards.The DRSCs, constituted under Section 215B of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, will oversee the initiative at the district level. The roadmap prepared by MoRTH lays down specific milestones, including onboarding of district magistrates on MYBharat, training schedules, experiential learning programmes and structured reporting. Transport commissioner said the initiative was designed to "convert the energy of youth into tangible road-safety outcomes" with a focus on reducing crashes, improving response times and strengthening citizen safety.The 28 districts selected in UP include Lucknow, Kanpur Nagar, Agra, Prayagraj, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Gorakhpur, Bareilly and Bulandshahr, among others.Officials said structured training, data-driven reporting and youth-led interventions are expected to reduce fatalities, improve emergency coordination and build sustainable road-safety systems across the state....