With no centres to hear, panic buttons in buses lie idle
A parliamentary panel has found that emergency alert buttons in buses are largely ineffective due to a lack of response centers. Despite high maintenance costs for operators, the system suffers from false alarms and poor implementation across states.
Why it matters
It highlights systemic failures in public safety infrastructure and the burden of compliance costs on transport operators.
NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has taken note of a curious case involving emergency alert buttons in buses. While the switches cost just Rs 15-20 each, they have largely remained unused because there are no dedicated centres to respond to alerts. Bus operators told the panel they are still required to pay Rs 2,500 to Rs 25,000 per vehicle to have the switches tested during mandatory fitness tests.The latest report of the parliamentary standing committee on transport, tourism and culture, headed by JDU's Sanjay Jha, noted that the buttons were made mandatory after the 2012 Nirbhaya case as a safety measure for women passengers.The report said the road transport ministry informed the panel that in several states, the system had been connected to emergency…
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