Centre writes to online retail giant Amazon, asks it to stop sale of seat belt alarm blockers
The senior minister's remarks follow his statement from earlier this week, when he said that the Centre has decided to ban all kinds of seat belt alarm stoppers in the country.
FollowUnion Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said he has asked online retail giant Amazon to stop selling devices that disable seat belt alarms. He also said that the decision to stop the sale of such devices has been taken due to 'potential safety risks'.
"Meta clips available on Amazon are inserted in seat belt slots to bypass the alarm that typically keeps pinging when seatbelts are not in use while a car is being driven,"the Union minister said.
Also read: Centre aims to reduce road accidents by 50% by the end of 2024
"People buy these clips to evade wearing seat belts. We have sent a notice to Amazon to stop selling these," he further said.
The senior minister's remarks follow his statement from earlier this week, when he said that the Centre has decided to ban all kinds of seat belt alarm stoppers in the country.
Also read: Rear seat occupants not wearing a seat belt will be penalised, says Gadkari
The death of industrialist Cyrus Mistry on September 4 in a car accident near Mumbai has made the use/non-use of seat belts in cars a major topic of discussion. Citing initial probe, the local police said that Mistry, who was on the rear seat, did not fasten his seat belt.
On Tuesday, the Union minister announced that seat belts will be mandatory for all passengers, and those violating the rule will be penalised. The government will also mandate beepers for rear seat belts mandatory.
In addition, rear seat belt reminder systems will be added to automobiles and SUVs. The requirement that back seat passengers wear seat belts means that going forward, all passengers in vehicles and SUVs must do the same, or else a fine would be assessed.
Also read: Mercedes-Benz to investigate Cyrus Mistry's car accident; collects encrypted data
The Minister also proposed using Indian musical instruments instead of automobile horns as a remedy for the growing levels of noise pollution. "My proposal is to substitute the sound of automobile horns with that of Indian instruments in order to lessen sound pollution," Gadkari remarked.
In India, not wearing seat belts – front or rear – attracts a fine of Rs 1,000 per person. However, the rule is rarely enforced.
subscribe to Asianet Newsable WhatsApp channel by clicking here.
