Most automobile manufacturers in India are already exporting cars with six airbags, Union Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said on September 14, adding that there is a need to adopt similar safety norms for cars in the country. He also emphasized that Indian automobile manufacturers should also think about the safety of people using small economy cars.
Addressing the annual session of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), Gadkari said that every year around 5 lakh road accidents kill 1.5 lakh people and injure more than 3 lakh.
“Most of the automobile manufacturers in India are exporting cars with 6 airbags. But in India, because of the economic model and cost, they are hesitating,” he said.
He wondered why automobile manufacturers are not thinking about the lives of people using economy cars in India as the lower middle class people buy small economy cars.
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Gadkari said that reducing accidents in the country is the need of the hour.
Gadkari said, “We need the cooperation of the automobile industry to reduce accidents. There should be healthy competition among manufacturers to produce safe cars.”
From October, the government is trying to make it mandatory for car manufacturers to provide at least six airbags in eight-seater vehicles to enhance the safety of passengers.
The Union minister’s remarks came days after Cyrus Mistry’s accident, where he died during an accident due to lack of rear front airbags and Mistry not wearing a seat belt.
Also, his remarks assume significance as it raises concerns in the backdrop of the automobile industry that high taxation and stricter safety and emission norms for vehicles have made their products costlier.
Earlier this year, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) said in a statement that in order to enhance the safety of motor vehicle occupants against side impact, it was decided to enhance the safety features by amending the Central Motor Vehicles Rules. Is. (CMVR), 1989.
“A draft notification has been issued on January 14, 2022, which states that M1 class vehicles manufactured after October 1, 2022 shall be equipped with two side/side torso air bags, each with front row outboard seating. position, and two side curtain/tube air bags, one each for persons sitting outboard,” it said.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, over 1.55 lakh people lost their lives in road accidents across India in 2021 – an average of 426 daily or 18 every single hour – which is the highest recorded in any calendar year. Higher death toll. far.
According to the report titled ‘Road Accidents in India – 2020’, more than 11 per cent of the deaths and injuries were due to non-use of seat belts.
With PTI input.
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