A video on the central government’s mandate on car airbags and the auto industry’s response to it
A video on the central government’s mandate on car airbags and the auto industry’s response to it
India has asked the auto industry to compulsorily install 6 airbags in passenger vehicles that seat up to 8 people. The deadline for this is October 1 this year.
So, two airbags protect the driver and front passenger from frontal impact, two on their respective sides. The curtain airbags protect passengers seated in the row behind the driver against lateral or side impact.
The Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has said that companies making cars in India are not meeting international standards, even though the same models when sold in foreign markets comply with international standards. He says given that India reports the maximum crashes and road deaths, all of us need to take safety seriously.
But why is the Indian auto industry reluctant to meet this mandate? And why is the industry concerned about the small-car market shrinking?
Videography: Johan Sathyadas J.
Production: Shibu Narayan
Script: K. Bharat Kumar