BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday passed an order to the state government to take steps to ensure availability of crash helmets and safety harnesses to be worn by young children while riding pillion on two-wheelers in the market in sufficient numbers.
The division bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C M Poonacha passed the order for making safety gadgets available to enforce the rule that makes wearing of these safety gadgets mandatory, while disposing of the public interest litigation filed by Archana K Bhat, Associate Professor and Head of the Department of Psychology at a private college in Shivamogga.
The safety gadgets for children were introduced through Section 138(7) of the Central Motor Vehicle (Second Amendment) Rules, 2022, which was notified on February 15, 2022, under Section 129 of the Motor Vehicles Act.
The court granted six months to the state government authorities for enforcing the rule after ensuring the safety gadgets in the market.
This apart, the court directed the authorities of the state to continue awareness programmes about the new rule, which mandates a motorcycle rider to ensure that a child between the ages of nine months and four years, carried as a pillion rider, has to wear a crash helmet and safety harness compulsorily.
Earlier to this, the transport department informed the court that the manufacturers of these new safety gadgets required time as they have to undergo tests before selling them in the market.