Union Minister of Transport Nitin Gadkari has approved a draft gazette notification which will now make 6 airbags compulsory in private vehicles carrying up to 8 passengers.
This is a move that has been under discussion over a few months now, wherein initially 2 airbags- one for the driver seat and one for the co-passenger seat were made mandatory in July 2019 and January 2022, respectively.
Now, 4 additional airbags are mandated, i.e two side/side torso airbags and two side curtain/tube airbags covering all outboard passengers. Gadkari while informing the same via tweets on January 14 assured that this step will ultimately ensure the safety of passengers.
"This is a crucial step to make motor vehicles in India safer than ever. This will ultimately ensure the safety of passengers", read his tweet.
When the Union Minister had just floated the idea, Moneycontrol had explained how this move can put a financial strain on the end consumer, even though it improves road safety.
On average, adding a frontal airbag to a car, costs between Rs 5,000-8000, while a side and curtain airbag (which is included in the total count) can cost much more. This would mean that each car sold in the small to mid-level segment would get a minimum price hike of approximately Rs 30,000 to over Rs 50000.
Also, it's to be noted, that most entry-level cars would have to have their chassis RE engineered to an extent as they are not structurally designed to provide the level of safety that comes with cars featuring six airbags.
However, six airbags will definitely ensure better protection as they would provide side impact protection.
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