As stated by the Union government, the Indian passenger vehicle six-airbag safety legislation won’t go into effect until October next year. Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister for Road Transport, made this announcement on September 30, 2022. The regulation will go into effect on October 1, 2023.
Before October 1, 2022, the government desired to implement six airbags, a requirement for all eight-seater automobiles to improve Safety. During a collision, an airbag gets between the operator and the car’s dashboard, preventing significant injury.
Gadkari posted on Twitter, “Considering the global supply chain constraints being faced by the auto industry and its impact on the macroeconomic scenario, it has been decided to implement the proposal mandating a minimum of 6 Airbags in Passenger Cars (M-1 Category) w.e.f October 1 2023.” Safety of all passengers travelling in motor vehicles irrespective of their cost and variants is the foremost priority,” the minister stated.
On anonymity, a source in the car sector previously informed Moneycontrol, “The government is likely to miss the October 1, 2022 deadline to implement the rule of mandatory six airbags in a car. There are physical limitations behind the same. While the govt had issued a draft notification, they have to give 30 days to the industry players to seek their views and comments. After the government goes through the industry’s feedback, it will work on the final notification, which will also take some time.”
Another source said: “The component manufacturers will only start building additional capacities (for airbags) if they have a firm order from the OEM. Once the OEMs start placing orders, the capacities will also become adequate within six months from now. What the OEMs now need to do is recalibrate the vehicle by equipping it with physical (airbag) sensors in seats as well as in seatbelts and then submit it to test agencies like ARAI or ICAT to get it type-approved before they can produce it.”
Response from the opposition
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) spokesman Clyde Crasto remarked on the government’s proposal to postpone the six-airbag rule: “Safety of all passengers in cars is a priority irrespective of their cost, therefore cars with 6 #airbags mandatory from Oct 2023. But not everyone can afford this variant and since ‘safety is a priority’, will Gadkari Ji ask the government to give a subsidy?”
Initiatives taken to implement the plan
The Ministry of Road Transport released a draught statement on January 14, 2022, requiring the installation of six airbags in all M1 category cars built after October 1, 2022. Minister Nitin Gadkari underlined the importance of car seatbelts on September 6 and said that every person in a vehicle would have to wear one.
The Union Minister shared a video from an occasion. “It will now be mandatory for all the people sitting in the car to wear a seat belt,” tweeted Union Minister Nitin Gadkari. He also mentioned in the video that back seats would now have safety beeps in addition to the frontal seats, which ring if the front seats are not in use.
Eyeopener: The Passing Away of Cyrus Mistry in Road Accident
Nitin Gadkari’s comments came following the passing earlier this month of well-known entrepreneur and former chairman of Tata Sons Cyrus Mistry in a car accident close to Mumbai. According to accounts, Mistry was reportedly not buckled up in the backseat of the vehicle he was riding in.
Gadkari stated to the media organization PTI earlier this year that compact automobiles, which lower-middle-class individuals often use, should also have a fair number of airbags. He questioned why automakers only included eight airbags in large vehicles purchased by the wealthy.
National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) Report
The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reports that more than 1.3 lakh people died in road collisions in India in 2021, the most tremendous death toll documented for a calendar year. This equates to 426 deaths per day or 18 per hour.
