Sale of non-ISI helmets to be banned soon
Non-ISI helmets for two-wheeler drivers are set to be banned by the end of the year. In a bid to reduce road fatalities, the government will soon make it mandatory for all helmet manufacturers to obtain a Indian standards certification from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). This process is set to be completed in around six months, said a senior official.
You're already legally obliged to wear a ISI certified helmet
Section 129 of the Motor Vehicles Act makes it mandatory for two-wheeler riders to wear protective headgear which conforms to specifications decided by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
Hefty penalties for selling helmets with fake ISI mark
The news came from an event on road transport where Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Dharmendra Pradhan launched a mobile app, a toll free number, and a driver training scheme to bring down road fatalities. Once the norm is put into place, sale of non-ISI helmets will be banned, and sale of helmets using a fake ISI mark will attract very high penalties.
Over 10,000 deaths in India for not wearing helmets
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), motorists without helmets have a 40% more chance of being fatally injured in road accidents. In India, according to official data, at least 10,135 people died for not wearing helmets in 2016.
Riders buy cheap helmets owing to price of ISI helmets
According to the President of the ISI Helmet Manufacture Association (ISIHMA), Rajeev Kapur, around 75-80% of helmets used by two-wheeler riders in India do not meet ISI specifications. The market for helmets in India, which sees a massive demand of around 90 million units per annum, is flooded with cheap, sub-standard helmets owing to the relatively high price of ISI certified helmets.
