New Delhi : Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said that it is not necessary to install six airbags in passenger cars, as the government is not going to make the rule of six airbags in cars mandatory. However, last year the government had proposed to make six airbags mandatory in passenger vehicles from October 2023. This protective step was taken to reduce the number of deaths in road accidents. Media reports said that automobile companies were not in favor of making its compliance mandatory. He said that making six airbags mandatory will increase the cost of small cars especially.
Government does not want to make the rule of six airbags in cars mandatory
Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, while clarifying the government’s stand on the issue of six airbags in cars during an event organized in New Delhi, said that we do not want to make the rule of six airbags mandatory for cars. He said that airbags play an important role in protecting the passenger from direct collision with solid parts of the vehicle in case of an accident. In case of an accident, it expands like a balloon and prevents the passenger from a direct collision.
A year ago the government had amended the old rules
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had said in a statement last year that it has been decided to enhance the safety features to make motor vehicles safer for passengers. For this, amendments were also made in the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. Airbags for the front two seats of cars have been made mandatory from April 1, 2021.
Why are airbags necessary in cars?
The purpose of using airbags is to provide protection to the body of the car occupants. It is installed at places like steering wheel or dashboard, so that the person sitting in the car does not directly hit the steering or dashboard. Airbags work to protect both front and sides.
How does an airbag work?
The inflator in the airbag is filled with a chemical called sodium azide. When a car collides with something and crashes, a sensor installed in the bumper of the car (which is directly connected to the airbag) sends current to the airbag and the airbag opens depending on the speed of the collision. Then this chemical produces nitrogen gas, due to which the airbag inflates and in case of a car collision or overturning, your body gets shocked and hits the airbag. This increases the chances of saving your life or getting injured, but the airbags deploy within a few milliseconds once the sensor receives the message. Due to this, there is a possibility of fracture in the bones of your wrist, fingers, face etc. due to collision of your body with the airbag.
How many airbags are required in a car?
Till now there was no such fixed criteria. Companies used to install airbags according to the car model, but recently all car manufacturing companies have been instructed that now the number of airbags in cars should not exceed 6. However, the number of airbags in cars like Mahindra XUV700 and Innova Crysta is 7.