Supreme Court orders Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary to appear over highway safety compliance

The Supreme Court of India has directed the Chief Secretary of Tamil Nadu to appear via video conferencing following the state's failure to file a compliance affidavit regarding highway safety directions. The court noted that no representative appeared for the state during the hearing concerning an April 13 order aimed at strengthening highway safety.

The safety directions, issued following fatal accidents in Rajasthan and Telangana in late 2025, include measures such as removing encroachments, increasing highway patrolling, identifying accident blackspots, and deploying emergency response infrastructure.

Additionally, the Court informed that the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways have also failed to file their respective affidavits. Both ministries have been granted two weeks to comply, with a warning that their secretaries may be required to appear in person if they fail to do so.