New Delhi: Airbags have now been made mandatory for the front passenger seat — apart from the driver’s seat — in all new car models manufactured on or after 1 April 2021.
For cars which are already under production, the deadline for fitting airbags for the front passenger seat has been set as 31 August 2021, according to a notification issued on 3 March by the Union Road Transport and Highways ministry.
The notification, though, does not apply to vehicles on the road.
Airbags in cars were made mandatory for drivers in July 2019. Automobile sector experts say the move will result in only a marginal increase in prices of existing and new car models.
According to road ministry officials, the notification was issued to ensure road safety.
India records one of the highest road fatalities in the world.
According to a report by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways published in September 2020, there were over 4.49 lakh road accidents in India in 2019, which led to over 1.5 lakh deaths.
According to a 2018 report by the World Health Organization, India topped the world in deaths by road accidents, with more than 400 fatalities per day.
What are airbags
Airbags are large nylon bags which inflate and deflate very quickly in case a vehicle is in a collision.
It is meant to limit the impact of the accident on passengers in the car by cushioning them, and also prevent, to an extent, contact with the interior parts of the car.
The driver’s airbag is housed in the central part of the steering wheel, while airbags for passengers in the front seat are in the upper left part of the dashboard. The airbag is controlled by sensors that can detect a crash and its severity.
Airbags are primarily designed to protect adults and are known to be dangerous for children.
‘Marginal’ increase in vehicle cost
K.K. Gandhi, convenor of Centre for Autopolicy and Research and former principal advisor at Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, told ThePrint the move will result in a small increase in the cost of vehicles.
“For new models, which will go into production and existing models that are already under production, the fitting will happen at the manufacturers’ end and will result in only a marginal increase in cost,” Gandhi said.
Amit Bhat, executive director, Integrated Transport World Resources Institute, welcomed the move, saying it was required as India currently tops the list of road fatalities in the world.
“There are four areas of interventions for ensuring road safety. These are safe road users, safe infrastructure, safe vehicles and safe speed. The provision for airbags comes under the safe vehicles category,” Bhat said.
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