Hyderabad youth emerges India’s safest young driver

Pranay Agarwal from Hyderabad has emerged as the safest young driver across India, beating 29 other finalists, and winning the title of Maruti Suzuki Young Driver 2014.

At the final test conducted at the Institute of Driving & Traffic Research (IDTR), Pranay drove ahead of the 29 finalists. He was closely followed by Abhishek Mishra from Gurgaon and Karanveer Singh from Jalandhar as the first and second runners-up.

Aimed at spreading awareness of safe driving practices, Maruti Suzuki Young Driver 2014, now in its sixth edition, is a nationwide hunt for India's best young driving talent. It tests the competitors' knowledge of traffic regulations and consciousness of road safety, along with their on-road driving skills. This year's contest reached out to over 24,000 youth through an online theory quiz, followed by skill driving tests conducted at Maruti Driving Schools across 42 major cities in India. The 30 contestants who cleared the first two test levels underwent the final round at the IDTR and were adjudged by professional IDTR trainers to select the safest Indian young driver of the year.

"Maruti Suzuki Young Driver makes an apt platform to send across the message of safe driving," said Mahesh Rajoria, general manager, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.

India leads the list of countries with the most number of deaths due to road accidents.

"While passion and performance are usually associated with driving, we believe precaution is a factor that must not be ignored," said Hormazd Sorabjee, editor of Autocar India magazine.