Transport min hits the 'panic' button; Now public buses to have safety

New Delhi, May 26: In the wake of rising crime against women in New Delhi, the transport minister has declared that in the coming months panic buttons, CCTVs and GPS would be installed in all the public buses to make journey safer.

This decision follows the government's decision last month that makes it mandatory for all mobile phones sold in India from 2017 to have a panic button that can be activated by pressing a single key.

Minister Nitin Gadkari said, "We issued a draft notification on May 2 to amend the central motor vehicle rules, making the installation of safety devices (on buses) mandatory. We hope to finalise the notification by June." He flagged off the first 20 buses of the Rajasthan State transport fleet as a pilot project.

A road ministry official said that a panic button will be placed in front of all the seats and on pressing a signal will be sent to a centralised control room and help will be sent immideately.

The alert will be sent to both the transport department and the police. While GPS will help in tracking the vehicle, the camera footage will film the perpetrators. Biometric details of the driver and the conductor will also be collected. However, the project will be implemented in phases and the implementation cost will be split between the state and the Center, the latter's sharing coming from the Nirbhaya fund.

OneIndia News