Panic button in mobile phones delayed till Feb-end

Today, nothing much has changed when it comes to the safety for women, and the recent incidents in Bangalore will vouch for it. Post the horrific incident in Delhi,  Nirbhaya fund was setup to implement features that could help curb similar incidents. 

The Ministry of Finance had approved a Nirbhaya Fund that would be used for integration of the police administration with mobile phone network in order to trace and respond to distress calls with minimum response time. The Department of Telecommunications had announced the implementation of panic button and Global Positioning System facility in phones last year.  The features were to be mandatory starting this year. However, the deadline has been extended by two months. And, your phones may not come with the mandatory panic button until March - April.  

"“Technology is solely meant to make human life better and what better than using it for the security of women. I have taken a decision that from January 1, 2017, no cell phone can be sold without a panic button and from January 1, 2018, handsets should also have GPS inbuilt,” Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had said during the announcement. 

Now, Telecom Secretary J S Deepak has told PTI, "On the request of mobile device manufacturers, we have extended the period for implementing panic button in new handsets by two months … the players had made a request saying they have unsold inventory of mobile phones without the panic button … so we have given them an extension till February 28."

Moreover, the government has said that starting January 1, 2018 no phone maker will sell a new device in India without these fuctionalities. The panic button will make an emergency call to the number 112. The number 112 is said to be India's equivalent to US' 911. However, the trial run of the number is said to stopped after it received several blank calls.

Also Read: Top 5 women safety apps

• Panic button
• Mobile phones
• Bangalore