Accordingly starting from Tuesday, all Road Transport Offices (RTOs) in the state will not register or issue fitness certificates for passenger and commercial vehicles if they do not have certified GPS systems or emergency ‘panic’ buttons. Meanwhile the Karnataka State Transport Department issued a release which stated that it would be ensuring that the mandate by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) is put into practice.
The release stated “AIS-140-certified vehicle tracking system along with emergency button is mandatory from January 1, 2019, for all public/passenger vehicles and commercial vehicles with the national permit”. Further it added that once the details were integrated, the state had the ability to monitor vehicles and track if there were any issues with over speeding.
Moreover as per the department, vehicles which are fitted with ‘AIS140-certified vehicle tracking’ and an emergency button will provide a safe environment for passengers and will ensure that road safety measures are followed. Accordingly a national vehicle tracking portal has been developed by the BSNL which will allow RTOs to check and ensure that all vehicles meet these standards. Further there have been several cases where passengers have been harassed by cab drivers to have safety checks in place to prevent such incidents from occurring.
