In a major crackdown against the making sale of substandard helmets, the Cyberabad police arrested two people from Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh, who manufactured such headgears.
The accused, Dheeraj Kumar, manufactured ‘O2 helmets’, while Anil Kumar was manufacting helmets made of three different brands – Welfare, Hood and Duro.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) SM Vijay Kumar said that for the first time in the country, manufacturers of low quality headgears were arrested. The accused were brought to Hyderabad on Monday.
With increasing menace of sale, distribution and usage of low-quality and fake helmets in the capital, the Cyberabad police constituted a special team to identify and raid the warehouses.
“A team of Economic Offences Wing identified such manufacturing companies at Ghaziabad to curb manufacturing, supply of such low quality helmets which are against law and provide no protection to the riders,” he said.
The officer said that so far they have booked 10 cases against those companies.
“The fatalities have drastically increased. On detailed analysis, it was identified that the two wheeler riders and pillion riders who were not wearing helmets or wearing low quality helmets constitute a majority of the deaths in road accidents,” Mr. Kumar said, adding that such helmets were manufactured at various places in the National Capital Region.
According to him, most of the low quality helmets bear a fake ISI mark and they are made of cheap plastic, fibre and thermocol materials which can’t bear the weight/pressure of a bike rider on fall as mandated by legal standards.
The manufacturing cost of these low-quality helmets would be anywhere between ₹100 and ₹200 - but are sold at ₹500 and above.
“Such headgears does not give any kind of protection to the bike rider during accidents as they break on minor impact. Motorcyclists should exhibit a sense of self-responsibility, scientific approach in using proper, standard helmets,” the officer said.
He said that police will book ‘Not wearing helmet’ cases against two-wheeler riders who are found wearing low-quality or fake or half/skull cap helmets.
The Cyberabad police will write to the Bureau of Indian Standards against the ‘misuse’ of ISI certification, he said.