Mumbai, January 18, 2016: While the National Road Safety Week is still a day away from its conclusion, the joint efforts from Society for Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), Society of Automotive Fitness and Environment (SAFE) brought to life, several activities through the week. In a collaboration with its members and traffic police of various states SIAM and SAFE conducted several programs to address the masses and raise awareness about road safety. The theme for the road safety week celebrations 2016 is, “Road Safety – Time for Action.”
The National Road Safety week started on the 10th of January in New Delhi with the ‘Walk for Safety’ event at the India Gate. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and Society for Automotive Fitness and Environment (SAFE) in association with the Ministry of Roads, Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and the Delhi Police today organised the ‘Walk for safety’. The event was led by Minister of Roads, Transport and Highways, Mr. Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. Rajnath Singh, Commissioner of Police in Delhi and Special Commissioner of Police along with senior officials from the ministry and Delhi Police. Known for his astounding contribution towards the eradication of Polio in India, Dr. Harsh Vardhan and Gautam Gambhir, the well-known Indian cricketer also joined the rally to spread the message of road safety. The march started at the India Gate and concluded at Shastri Bhawan.
Talking about the initiative, Mr. Vishnu Mathur, Director General, SIAM said, “SIAM – SAFE are totally committed towards spreading the message of Road Safety in our citizens. SIAM-SAFE with the full support from members will organize program across 4200 automobile dealers network all across the nation and also will organize various training workshops, competitions, walk for students, drivers and general masses with an objective of reducing fatalities on our roads. We are extremely thankful to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Delhi Police and others who have extended their support to us in making this initiative a success.”
The event was followed by several activities by automobile manufacturers across the country. The events were executed at the dealerships of the companies in association with various manufacturers. Companies like Ashok Leyland Ltd, Bajaj Auto Ltd, Fiat India Automobiles Pvt. Ltd, General Motors India Pvt. Ltd, Eicher Ltd, Hero MotoCorp Ltd, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India Pvt. Ltd, Honda Cars India Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd, Mahindra Two Wheelers Ltd, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, Renault India Pvt Ltd, SKODA AUTO India Pvt Ltd, Volkswagen India Pvt Ltd, VE Commercial Vehicles Ltd, Volvo Buses, Tata Motors Ltd, TVS Motor Company Ltd, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd and Yamaha motor Pvt. Ltd took active participation in the events.
The various events focused on the road safety measures such as the need for wearing helmets, avoiding drunk driving, use of cell phone while on wheels, wearing of seat belts, use of dazzling head lights, and compliance to road rules. There were several other workshops which were organized for focused groups like the cab drivers and auto rickshaw drivers. Several driver training programs were also carried out during the week.
