New Delhi: At least 90% of the vehicles plying on Indian roads do not come with 6 airbags. This most important safety feature is limited to expensive vehicles only. According to a report in the Times of India, the auto industry believes that most buyers opt for cheaper variants even in models that come with the option of more airbags. Because of this, the share of cars with more than two airbags in the country is low.
The two-airbag feature is now being made standard in the cars sold in the country. However, this was not the case earlier. Some companies were selling cars with only one airbag. Later the government made it mandatory to have two airbags in the car. This forced all the car companies to upgrade from January this year.
Most road accidents happen in India
India has the highest number of road accidents in the world. The government believes that equipping vehicles with more airbags will help reduce the number of lives lost on the roads. India accounts for only 1% of the world’s vehicles but accounts for 11% of road deaths.
Different logic of the auto industry
On the other hand, the government is pressurizing the companies to provide more safety features in all cars. However, a section of the auto industry argues that issues such as better enforcement of seat belt rules, drinking and driving, speed limits, and wrong-lane driving should also be addressed to cut the mortality rate.
Will the 6 airbags mandatory rule apply?
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had proposed to make 6 airbags mandatory in all cars from October 2022, but it seems that this is not possible at the moment. A section of the auto industry is against this rule. At the same time, Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Monday that work is still going on on this plan.
Could have saved more than 13,000 lives
Gadkari asked the car manufacturers why some car companies are opposing this safety feature when they were exporting cars with 6 airbags. Earlier, he had said that 6 airbags in cars could have saved more than 13,000 lives in 2020. Auto industry and government sources said that most buyers opt for the two-airbag variant even in the model that comes with the option of 6 airbags, so the companies are not in a hurry.
