Centre writes to Amazon, asks it to stop sale of seat belt alarm blockers

Earlier this week, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said that the government has decided to ban all kinds of seat belt alarm stoppers in the country.

Published on: Sep 8, 2022, 14:29:08 IST

By HT News Desk, New Delhi

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The Union government has asked online retail giant Amazon to stop selling devices that disable seat belt alarms, Union minister for road transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari, told Reuters, adding that the decision to stop the sale of such devices has been taken due to ‘potential safety risks’.

“Meta clips available on Amazon are inserted in seat belt slots to bypass the alarm that typically keeps pinging when seatbelts are not in use while a car is being driven,” Gadkari told Reuters in an interview.

“People buy these clips to evade wearing seat belts. We have sent a notice to Amazon to stop selling these,” he further said.

The senior minister's remarks follow his statement from earlier this week, when he said that the Centre has decided to ban all kinds of seat belt alarm stoppers in the country.

The death of industrialist Cyrus Mistry in a car accident near Mumbai on September 4 has made the use/non-use of seat belts in cars a major topic of discussion. Citing initial probe, the local police said that Mistry, who was on the rear seat, did not fasten his seat belt.

Also Read | People are aware of rear seat-belts, but few follow: WHO survey

On September 6, Gadkari announced that seat belts will be mandatory for all passengers, and those violating the rule will be penalised. The government will also mandate beepers for rear seat belts, the minister further said.

Also Read | Govt to mandate warning beepers for rear seats: Gadkari

In India, not wearing seat belts – front or rear – attracts a fine of ₹1,000 per person. However, the rule is rarely enforced.

(With Reuters inputs)

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