BENGALURU: Soon, those riding with children above nine months and within four years on two-wheelers will have to mandatorily use safety harnesses.
Sources from the transport department revealed that as per the Union government order, states must make safety harnesses mandatory, but it has not been implemented till now. Work is going on to implement this and awareness campaigns have already begun.
In the absence of a safety harness, there are high chances of children to fall from two-wheelers. In general, children are made to sit in the front on the fuel tanks in case of bikes, or are made to stand in scooters near the space reserved for the footrest. While braking, there are chances for children losing balance and falling from running vehicles and the safety harness will help the child attached to the rider, the source explained.
Also, unlike adults, children tend to fall asleep during the ride and fall. “We have seen people riding their vehicles holding the child in one hand,” he added.
Officials of the transport department across the state have started to create awareness about the importance of safety harnesses. Awareness programs are being held at some of the Deputy Commissioners’ offices and soon it will spread to all the DC offices in the state. There are plans to rope in the education and police departments to create awareness and enforce the the rule, he said.
After creating enough awareness, transport department officials will start penalising those who do not fall in line. The safety harness should be of Bureau of Indian Standards and should have straps to adjust to the size and weight of the child (up to 30 kg).