Dhaka, July 6 -- Safe roads remain a distant dream in Bangladesh, as the proposed law aimed at ensuring the safety rights of pedestrians, drivers and other road users has yet to be finalised despite being under development for the past eight years.

Although the government identified road safety as a priority in its 180-day agenda, little visible progress has been made beyond the preparation of a draft Road Safety Act, according to officials familiar with the process.

They said two committees, originally formed during the interim government, were reconstituted and the draft law was submitted to the ministry concerned in May.

However, the draft has remained pending for ministerial approval, delaying the next stages of the legislative pro...