[ad_1]
The Centre has proposed new safety regulations for Indian vehicles, aimed at enhancing road safety. The proposed rules mandate seat belt reminders for all front-facing rear seats in passenger cars (M1 category) manufactured after April 1, 2025.
The draft rules, published on Friday, aim to ensure that all passengers wear seat belts, significantly reducing the risk of injuries.
These proposed safety standards are part of AIS-145-2018 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules (CMVR), 1989, which mandates the use of specific safety features, such as safety belts, restraint systems, and safety belt reminders, in vehicles manufactured after specific dates.
The move comes as seat belts are a crucial tool in reducing the chances of fatalities in road collisions. According to the ‘Road Accidents in India — 2022’ report by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), released in December 2023, 16,715 people were killed in road accidents in 2022 due to not wearing seat belts. Among the casualties, 8,384 were drivers, and 8,331 were passengers.
Additionally, all vehicles in categories M1 (passenger cars designed to carry up to eight persons, including the driver), L7 (quadricycles designed for up to four persons), M2 (buses carrying more than eight persons with a maximum mass of 3.5 tonnes), M3 (buses carrying more than eight persons with a mass exceeding 3.5 tonnes), and N (goods-carrying vehicles with a maximum mass of over 3.5 tonnes) manufactured after April 1, 2025, and April 1, 2026, will be required to have improved restraint systems and safety belt assemblies that comply with specific standards.
After the implementation of the Central Motor Vehicles (Tenth Amendment) Rules, 2024, all vehicles will be required to have safety belt assemblies and anchorages that comply with the IS 15140:2018 and IS 15139:2002 standards. The installation of safety belts and restraint systems in all vehicles will also need to adhere to the IS 16694:2018 standard.
The restraint system refers to safety mechanisms in a vehicle designed to protect occupants during a collision by restraining their movement.
This typically includes seat belts, but it can also encompass other features such as airbags, seat belt pretensioners, and load limiters.
The goal of these systems is to minimise the risk of injury by keeping the occupants securely in their seats and reducing the impact forces on their bodies.
First Published: Aug 23 2024 | 6:43 PM IS
[ad_2]
Source link